The morning sky was dark, scudded with low hanging clouds that threatened rain.
He was led in chains to the execution stand, clanking with each sullen step. Mud swirled as the crowd gathered. Commonfolk and palace staff alike gathering in the courtyard, filling it to the brim. The news of the assassination had spread far and wide. The king was famous and his subjects had loved him so, none more than his royal retainer, Magnar the Magnificent.
They gathered to witness history, to see the second-most famous figure in the kingdom die, mere days after the most famous was killed. Hardly anyone believed it and so they came to see for themselves.
An audible gasp rose as he stepped onto the old wooden stage. Criminals and bandits were normally the ones to stand where he was. Now there stood the most powerful man in the kingdom.
As the announcer read out his sentence, he scanned the crowd and found the familiar faces of his garrison. Floki, Godrid, Rikar and Sielet ¨C they made the four captains of the guard, warriors that he had hand-picked himself when putting together his royal guard.
They wore masks of apathy, but Magnar knew that should he attempt to escape, no doubt these four would lay their lives down to aid him. He heard from the guards that they had been combing the palace for any potential killers to put forward instead of him, but loyal as they were, they could find no substitute traitor. No doubt they still believed him innocent.
The announcements done, they made him kneel forward and locked him into the stocks. A massive man in a black hooded mask moved forward. Words were spoken. The axe was raised.
And came down.
And then Darkness.
Chapter 2: Blessing
[Receive thy Blessing, for Fate now carries thy lingering soul]
The observer walks along the river¡¯s edge, hands held out to strum at the long grey stalks that line its banks. He hums a tuneless and silent song as he gazes across the fog that hangs low and heavy over the water. The water is flowing, but shows no sign of movement. No waves, ripples or splashes accentuate the surface, leaving it eerily dead yet seemingly alive.
Silvery ribbons flow under the surface, sluggish and grey. They swill between the souls that flow down, downwards along the flow of the undercurrent towards a large imposing gate. Its outline is in the shape of a door, but it in of itself is not a door. The observer¡¯s eyes flick to the door but as soon as it focuses on the object itself a force pushes his gaze over. The waters flow into the gate, its movement unchanged as it passes the threshold. Although he cannot see the gate itself, he feels a familiarity in its presence. A comforting one, the feeling of a long day coming to a close. The feeling of finality, of closure.
A low dull wailing can be heard. Not in the air, but in the mind. A constant colourless grating against your thoughts, like a personal itch that you and you alone can feel. But never scratch.
[Born under a new star, one of vengeance. What thine Soul giveth, my Will accepts]
The observer stops. He notices that the fog is getting thinner as the air is swirling, eddying away from the river. He breathes deep, as if tasting fresh air for the first time. The fog is lifting.
The night sky suddenly intrudes on the silence. A loud chorus of shimmering lights bursts across the sky, its colours colliding with itself. Stars like scattered gems pierce the black night, their radiance dimmed only by the roiling fog, now churning and roiling against the light. Beams of light patched the darkness, rebelling against the pitch of the night.
The observer had recoils against the sight. He is now crouched, his hands above his head to ward off the offending array of starlight. He seems fearful of the light.
[The Skill of Acquisition! Thus is thy blessing]
A single star descends, borne from the sky. It casts its flickering rainbow of light like an aurora, drenching the sky in its blazing wonder. It turns the night into day, its rays as bright as the sun. It descends lower still, down upon the river whose grey dullness does not reflect the brilliance above.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
No dancing lights can be seen on the water, no multicoloured spectacle reflected back in its still waters, as if it refusing to participate in the dazzling show above. The two sides of lightness and darkness, light in the sky and dark on the ground collide. They form a discernable line that splits the land horizontally, neither side giving in to the other. They seem to be at a stalemate, light and dark now in an uneasy equilibrium. The observer holds his breath.
***
A hand, of spun golden light, crosses the threshold. It reaches down into the murky depths of the water. For the first time, the surface tension is broken.
As if reacting to this sudden intrusion, the waters instantly explode into movement. They roll and crash violently, the calm surface now desolated by the water¡¯s rebellion. The equilibrium of light and dark is broken once more, rejected by the water¡¯s furious tirade. The observer has disappeared, now running from the river, his back turned against the chaos. His movement is slow, jerking, almost like he is moving through a dream. Or a nightmare.
The hand wastes no time. With a quick scoop, it draws out but a single soul. The river grasps at the soul, refusing to let go. It bubbles and clings to the hand, trying to drag the soul back into the depths. Light and dark crash. The hand persists, fingers tightening around its precious cargo. The water refuses to give up, swirling hard around the hand of light, forming a grey and black vortex.
Each side is trying to take back their own, each unwilling to give in to the other. The beams of light and darkness flicker back and forth, like a hanging light thrown into utter confusion. Once again, at a stalemate but this time with both sides throwing all they had into the fight.
[Fulfill thy destiny. Upon mine name as Abbath, Sovereign of light]
The light suddenly changes its tactics, withdrawing its beams from where they pool over the land, to concentrate into one single point where the hand has descended. The darkness is allowed to encroach closer and closer, but the hand also gets brighter and brighter. Like, a candle being swallowed by moths, its blaze is slowly smothered, the darkness becoming fuller.
A last blaze blasts the hand into the sky, like an incandescent firework shooting into the stars. It traces a glowing trail through the sky which fades as the darkness smugly returns. The river quietens and stills, now back to a tranquil state. Silence reigns once more.
Night returns and the grey blackness smothers the land and river once more. The fog rolls back and the observer fades from view, disappearing into the mist. All is silent, with no evidence of the epic clash remaining.
The land lies empty. Only in the darkness, a shadow remains. A blur. A half-forgotten memory.
Chapter 3: New Beginnings
I feel light...
Am I¡dead?
...
Yes, I must be dead.
...
Then why do I still have thoughts, this makes no sense.
What¡¯s going on?
¡
¡
¡
Leaves rustle. Footsteps patter outside.
Low murmurs and children yelling.
Wait¡am I not dead?
He opened his eyes. He was no longer knelt in the courtyard of the palace, but now staring up at a low thatched roof of some run-down dwelling. He was lying on a rough bed of straw.
A grunt beside him made him turn his head. There sat a rather ugly looking goblin, with tufts of hair protruding haphazardly under a cloth hat. The goblin seemed asleep.
He yelled.
He didn¡¯t really mean to, but the sudden appearance of the monster right beside him had startled him into the involuntary reaction.
The goblin woke up, falling over in sheer surprise.
¡°Well. You wake up in good condition, it seem,¡± he grunted, clearly pissed at his own rude awakening, ¡°okay, you go now. Get out of my house.¡±
And with that, he was ushered to the front door. A foot was planted in his backside, quite literally kicking him out of the house.
He found himself in the centre of a few rough and tumble dwellings, each made from mud and awkwardly angled sticks held together with vines and seemingly a refusal to obey any reasonable building logic.
Stakes and vines formed a fenced enclosure around these makeshift homes. In the very centre, a well was raised on a platform, complete with its own bucket and rope. All in all, a very humble yet dismal setting that he found himself in. A very simple goblin village.
The thick foliage surrounded the village, swaying in the breeze. It seemed that it was in the middle of a forest.
What in the Creator¡¯s good name is happening. Where am I, he wondered, how did I get here? Wait¡am I¡a goblin?
He stepped up to the well and looked down. A green face with tousled hair stared dazedly back at him. Green skin with deep black eyes set in a sharp face with ears that fanned out in typical goblin style. He was rather small in stature so he supposed he was still young; having been only just reincarnated as a goblin. Honestly, he couldn¡¯t really tell since goblin babies and elders alike had the same wrinkly skin.
Perhaps this was a trick. Maybe even punishment. Goblins were historically the weakest of the 6 main races, barely qualifying as the sixth one. Inferior in strength to the orcs, dismally lacking in intelligence to the elves and simply outnumbered by humans. They held no advantages.
He dimly remembered something of a dream, with a woman''s voice speaking to him. Something about a blessing and fate? He couldn''t quite remember.
Whatever his fate, all he could do was move forward.
A sudden flurry beside him, followed by a squeak and a small body colliding into his midriff.
¡°He¡¯s alive! Yay, we saved him!¡± crowed a young female goblin. She grinned up at him from his waist. ¡°Didn¡¯t we, elder!¡±
¡°It is good to see you well young one, we feared you had passed,¡± the one who spoke was an elder goblin leaning on a cane. For the uncultured and barbaric goblins, he spoke with surprising dignity. Though he looked fragile, almost fighting against gravity as he stood, there was a glint in his eye that spoke of his wisdom. ¡°There have been many attacks recently. We¡¯re glad another life was not claimed today.¡±If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.
It seemed that the village had found him somewhere in the surrounding area, though he was not sure how he got there in the first place. The palace was inside the capital city, a mighty citadel towering above the craggy plains it sat on. No forests were close enough for him to arrive at, let alone house a small goblin village such as this.
So, it seemed he was far away from home then. Perhaps he could find his bearings from here?
¡°Um, e-elder? I do humbly thank you for saving my life,¡± he began. The goblin mouth was a clumsy tool. ¡°Where is this place? I believe I am lost.¡± The elder looked surprised.
¡°Oh my, you speak quite well for such a young goblin. It is certainly a most rare thing,¡± he mused, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. ¡°Well, to answer your question, we are in the eastern region of the forest.¡±
¡
¡°W-well, to clarify,¡± he continued, in the awkward silence, ¡°This is the Abyssal Forest. Land of the free dwellers, tree folk and earth-kin.¡±
¡
¡°Um, is geography perhaps not your strong suit?¡± the elder quipped cheerfully.
Truthfully, none of these places rang a bell. And yes, he did skip a couple of geography lessons in the academy, but he did have extensive knowledge of the terrain in the kingdom. Perhaps¡he was farther than that?
¡°Elder, what lies outside the forest?¡±
¡°Hum, you are testing my knowledge now young one,¡± he huffed. The small female goblin had gotten bored and long since wandered off. The elder slowly used his cane to draw in the mud.
¡°Well say this is our forest, to the east of here is the mountain crags where the harpies and dragons dwell. To the north is the ice sheets, a place where few can go and even fewer can return,¡± as he spoke, a simple outline of the continent appeared on the ground. ¡°South of the forest is the volcanic region, where the demons make their domain.¡±
As the map took shape, he noticed that the west part was left blank.
¡°What is to the west, elder?¡± his suspicions seemed almost met with each added detail.
¡°¡to the west is where those loathsome humans reside, this dotted line marks their territory,¡± grimaced the elder.
The anger in the elder¡¯s words surprised him. Why did this goblin harbour such hate towards the innocent humans? As far as her could tell, they had never attacked this forest before or tried conquering this area. It seemed a very strong reaction to this, but he pushed this to the back of his mind.
That point was formed as he made the connection to the map on the ground. Although some parts were grossly incorrect, the two forked rivers were unmistakable. The kingdom was located right between where the twin rivers met. While there was some distance, he was still somewhat near the kingdom.
He nodded. ¡°Thank you elder, that helps me a great deal. I owe you a great debt.¡± The elder simply chuckled.
¡°Well young one, I hope you will stay in our village for now, we could always use an extra pair of hands to protect our humble village,¡± he smiled sadly, ¡°but if you choose to leave, we cannot stop you.¡±
¡°You mentioned this before, what threatens your village so?¡± he asked.
¡°A fearsome beast, one that haunts us everyday. In the common tongue it is called the White Death,¡± he sighed, shaking his grey head, ¡°Too many goblin warriors have been lost to this threat. We live in fear every day.¡±
Hmm, seems like the village is in a pickle. The thing is, I can¡¯t go to the capital like this so there¡¯d be no point trying to get back at this point, he thought, pondering his options.
Looking around, he saw they were mostly elderly and children, with only a few healthy males and females.
As darkness fell, the elder offered his hut to rest for the night. He thanked him and they settled down for dinner.
***
Oh god.
¡°Mm, we¡¯ve got more today. Eat up everyone, this is all to celebrate our dear friend not dying on us!¡± crowed the elder raising his clay cup.
Oh dear god.
¡°Yeah, mister, we thought you were a goner! Eat so you don¡¯t die again yeah?¡± beamed the little goblin.
Urp¡
¡°What¡¯s wrong young¡¯un, you don¡¯t look so good. In fact¡you look a little green!¡± cackled the elder. He was already on this third cup of thistle wine. The small goblin rolled her eyes.
¡°Um, well¡¡± he began hesitantly, ¡°is this what you eat every day?¡± He pointed to the spread in front of him.
On the table lay wooden plates of steaming bugs and miscellaneous creatures. Centipedes with hundreds of legs still twitching slightly about, fried pill bugs curled and uncurled and big fat cockroaches roasted on skewers.
Compared to the spreads prepared by the top chefs in the kingdom this was rather¡ordinary?
Actually. No, it was just plain disgusting.
¡°Oh yes, well when we had more warriors, we could hunt small animals and fish but now we make do with foraging for grubs,¡± the elder said, crestfallen. ¡°I¡¯m sorry we couldn¡¯t prepare a nicer meal for you young one.¡±
¡°Oh no, I¡¯m very grateful to you this is a fine meal. I¡¯m just about to dig in!¡± he said, plastering a fake and rather pained smile on his green face. He picked up a fat cockroach and looked at it. God it was worse up close. Wait, did its antennae just move?
¡°GAH, AHH,¡± he squealed as the cockroach sprang to life and scuttled out of his grasp and out of sight.
The little female goblin was rolling on the floor, tears streaming as she laughed while the elder scolded her.
¡°Listen elder, I¡¯m going to get some fresh air okay,¡± he said as he turned to the door.
¡°Okay, apologies for her she must have put a live one in while I wasn¡¯t looking. Make sure you don¡¯t wander outside the village,¡± replied the elder, now holding the little goblin by the scruff of her neck.
He left the hut and approached the front gate.
¡°Sorry elder, I can¡¯t eat bugs. At least not yet. I¡¯ll see what I can find the forest.¡±
He picked up an unused stake from the fence and headed into the dark woods illuminated only by the light from the moon.
Chapter 4: The Forest
The forest was abuzz with nocturnal life.
Insects hummed as fireflies danced and weaved amongst the leaves. Creatures great and small wandered the forest floor hunting for their nights¡¯ meal.
He kept a low profile as he was one of the smaller creatures, scurrying along with his improvised spear. While he was confident in his skills, he did not know the limits of his new body and what creatures dwelled in the darkness.
He could sense a dense magic in the air, almost like the forest itself was alive and breathing - steady streams of magic elements trailing softly alongside the fluorescent fireflies.
Suddenly, around him the air froze. The insect hum died and silence reigned. He froze as well, all of his senses tingling.
A rustle in the undergrowth further in front told him the creature was ahead. Perhaps this was what was killing the goblins, the White Death as the elder called them. Should he run away? Maybe this was too much for him to handle alone.
But he had to know what they were up against and this could be valuable information. Furthermore, it had not detected him yet.
Creeping forward, he scanned ahead and saw a clearing. A creature could be seen silhouetted against the dark foliage but the moon was behind a cloud, masking its features.
He did note that it was rather small and didn¡¯t seem to move like a predator. The way it was crouched and seemed to sniff the air. Unfortunately, that only meant that stronger beings than this creature also roamed the forest.
The clouds shifted and moonlight beamed down. Its fur shone with a white sheen. Two small twisted horns protruded from its head, with a silvery gem embedded in its forehead. Its gleaming red eye glinted, scanning the clearing keenly for any movement. Its fluffy tail bobbed dangerously as¡
Wait. Fluffy tail?
He peered closer and saw that in the clearing in fact crouched a rather small and cuddly looking rabbit. Yes, it did have two devilish looking horns¡and yes, its eyes did seem to have a somewhat evil looking redness. But honestly the way it just thumped its foot scratching its ear was simply too cute to take seriously. Perhaps calling it the White Death was an overstatement.
Maybe he had snickered to himself, or maybe his adoration was felt all the way across the clearing but suddenly the rabbit¡¯s ears and head shot up and twisted in alertness towards his direction.
He was found out.
Shoot, he thought. Cute as it is, it did take out fully grown goblins and I was literally born yesterday.
This was not a great fight to take and he cursed his carelessness.
Too late now. The rabbit was bolting towards him, horns lowered threateningly.
Yikes, that thing could move. He jumped to the side as it carved a rabbit-shaped hole in the brush behind him.The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Could he still run? Would it be able to smell and track him? Was it intelligent? Could it climb trees?
His mind was hurled into overdrive, considering all the possibilities. There was simply too much he didn¡¯t know. The rabbit was much faster than him and exposing his back while running away could prove to be a fatal mistake.
Before he could gather his thoughts, it was back. It sprang through the thicket to charge directly at him in a straight line. He jumped to the side, barely clearing the horns. Once more, it plunged through to the other side of the clearing.
Oh ho. I see it¡¯s weakness.
His mind was clear now, he knew what to do. It was predictable, an easy kill.
He steadied himself as it burst out a third time. He braced himself and held the stake at the ready.
As it made its leap, he thrust forward, a straight line connecting the stake to his arm and his shoulders. It was a move he had practised countless times as a young knight.
With a muffled crunch, the stake struck the rabbit. It was too blunt to split its head but the blow knocked the rabbit out cold.
He was surprised to find that his body was tougher than a human¡¯s body, his joints flexible and his grip was strong. He barely felt the shock as he struck down the rabbit.
It fell limp to the ground, a red patch where his stake split the skin.
*ding*
[You have acquired a new skill ¨C Leap]
***
The disembodied voice immediately made him jump back out of fright. He looked about him, but there was no one else in the clearing. In fact, it sounded like the voice came from inside his own head.
The voice did remind him of that dream though. In the dream, he remembered a shadowy figure speaking to him. The figure spoke of a blessing of some kind, of acquisition? Perhaps this was the voice of god speaking directly to him!
Well, from what I can understand I¡¯ve managed to gain a skill from killing this rabbit right? He thought. Is this a goblin¡¯s natural ability or part of that same blessing?
¡°Hmm, well I wonder if it¡¯s that same ability that the rabbit used to charge at me,¡± he pondered as his curiosity started to get the better of him. ¡°Did I steal it from the creature once I slayed it?¡±
¡°Well only one way to find out,¡± he said aloud, intrigued at this turn of events. If this was a blessing that was bestowed upon him, perhaps the gods had plans for him yet.
O god of light, please let me accept your blessing in its fullest. He prayed. What you have bestowed upon me, I shall use for your will.
He wondered for a moment if his prayers as a goblin could still be heard by his Lord of Light, or any gods for that matter. Maybe goblins kept different gods?
No matter, it was time to test his blessing.
¡°Leap!¡±, he cried.
¡
A solitary startled frog bounced away as his voice echoed in the undergrowth.
He did not leap, let alone even move. He did, however, feel a slight twinge as if a force was compelling him to move a certain way.
This feeling was not arcane in nature. He remembered the feeling of magic when the palace spell-master had shown him his powers in a demonstration for the King. That feeling was like a rush, a gushing fountain of power, almost as if a tremendous force was pushing at his soul.
No this was more of a light twinge, one that was barely noticeable but could be felt deep within. He felt it as a strange feeling in his legs, like springs coiled and ready to be released.
Ah so it¡¯s not magic but rather a simple skill. Almost like muscle memory.
¡°
!¡± he cried again, this time pushing with all his strength into his legs. The twinge turned into a giant whoosh! And he felt himself lift from the ground.
Wow, what a weightless feeling! I¡¯ve jumped so high with a single leap.
He found himself above the canopy. He could see the forest stretch out across the horizon.
Oh no¡this isn¡¯t good.
The fall wasn¡¯t nearly as graceful as the ascent, but the cuts and bruises left by the branches left him feeling refreshed. Here he was, the kingdom¡¯s most renown knight reincarnated as a young brash goblin, now equipped with the power of the gods.
Lord of Light you have my endless gratitude. You will is my way, Abbath O Holy Redeemer.
He grabbed the rabbit on his way back to the village, triumphant in this new revelation.
Chapter 5: My name is...
The elder¡¯s jaw dropped and he stood there in stunned silence, almost dropping his cane in surprise.
Four squealing goblin children led by the cheeky goblin girl danced circles around him as he revealed the snow-white fur of the rabbit. He had skinned it himself last night, before enjoying some simple grilled rabbit. The memory of the creepy crawlies feast was still giving him shivers now.
¡°Young one, did you hunt that yourself?¡± the elder gasped, visibly shaken by the turn of events. He stretched his hand out to feel the soft fur of the coat resting in the young goblins arms.
He supposed it was a big deal for the village but for him, it was a matter of his own dinner. He wasn''t expecting for this to become such a spectacle. His mistake was allowing the elder to glimpse the rabbit skin in the morning. They had brought it out into the sunlight to better marvel at how the coat seemed to shimmer in the light.
¡°Yes elder, I slew the rabbit,¡± he said uncertainly. Goblins, like orcs, typically revered power and strength. The last thing he wanted was for them to call him chieftain of the village for his heroics. He still had his goal of getting back to the kingdom eventually and becoming responsible for a weak goblin village in the middle of an enchanted forest was not going to help that.
A crowd was gathering, old folk and younger ones alike. They all came forward to catch a glimpse of the fur and to sneak in touches of the thin fur coat. They began whispering, wondering how this fur came to be in the village.
(Someone slay White Death?)
(No, can not be. Our best warrior not beat such fearsome beast.)
(Maybe found dead on ground then?)
(No one found one, sick or dying or dead around village. Why now?)
(Maybe that young goblin holding the fur, he not from here.)
(Hmm, maybe yes. Maybe he is MIGHTY WARRIOR who will save village!)
He could tell the crowd was getting worked up, the excitement building at the prospect that their mortal enemy could be vanquished. He had to nip that in the bud before it got out of hand.
¡°Good peo¡uh, goblins. This is indeed the White Death that you believe it to be,¡± he spoke, addressing the crowd. The goblins all gasped audibly, some nudging each other knowingly. ¡°I will tell you right now how the beast was slain.¡±
He cleared his throat as they watched him expectedly.
¡°Yes, it was on accident. I accidentally killed this, uh, rabbit.¡±
He nodded, eyes closed as if in utter belief that this was the truth.
In reality, he was trying his very best to avoid the gazes of the goblins. He was a terrible liar in his previous life and his code of honour as a knight of the kingdom made that even more severe of a trait.
(Wow, he so humble. Said like true warrior.)
(Yes, yes, to say it not even hard to kill White Death, very fearsome.)Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.
(Ah, so strong. Do you think he take my kid as mate?)
(No, he take my kid as mate. She more pretty than yours.)
He sighed, listening as his plan backfired around him. He waited as they squabbled over how much their daughters were worth, before the elder clapped his hands for silence.
The crowd hushed as the elder addressed them.
¡°Everyone, this young man comes from beyond our village. We do not know where he came from, or if he already has a family. Even if he has another clan that he must return to! It is unsightly how you all are trying to barter your daughters to him,¡± he scolded them.
They lowered their heads, acknowledging their shame at how quickly they had tried to sell their daughters off. He was delighted, however, as the elder seemed to be coming to his defense. Perhaps he would be able to be on his way before long. The elder continued speaking to the goblins.
¡°Yes, as such, we must convince him to stay with whatever means we have! All our treasures and heirlooms that we have, we must give him. Whatever we can provide will be his! He is the mighty warrior who will free us from the tyranny of the White Death and bring glory to our ancestors!¡± he cried out as the rest of the goblins cheered, some now with tears streaming down their weathered faces as they broke into ecstatic grins.
Wait, what? Curses elder, you played your hand perfectly. What a cunning tactician.
The elder had managed to lull him into a false sense of trust and pulled the rug from under him right at the last minute. He had to save this somehow.
¡°Wait,¡± he said, holding his hands up, ¡°wait a moment, I cannot stay in this village for long. I am currently on a quest to find a certain someone to whom I owe a great debt.¡±
This was not a lie as he was in fact on a quest, one to find the real assassin of the King. He also did owe the assassin a debt, one in the form of a sword pierced through the criminal¡¯s chest.
The goblins cheer slowly died as they realised that they could not persuade him to stay. The children started to cry as, although they couldn¡¯t understand what was happening, they could tell the mood was starting to turn sour. Their parents (who had only moments before tried their very best to put a monetary value on their children¡¯s worth as a mate) glared at him as if he had inflicted the tears on the children himself. The old goblins tutted and the elder crossed his arms.
¡°Um, well I could maybe teach you how to defeat the rabbits? I mean, I¡¯ll stay a bit longer but I won¡¯t, uh, be able to stay forever,¡± he stammered through the icy air that had just descended.
Slowly, very slowly, the elder goblin uncrossed his arms and looked at the adults. Unbeknownst to him, the elder¡¯s eye slowly slid into a wink. Their back up plan was now in effect ¨C keep the young goblin hero long enough to bribe him to stay. If they couldn¡¯t immediately win him over, they would turn this into a war of attrition. The adults nodded grimly in hard determination. This was a great boon that none of them could overlook.
¡°Well young one, you leave us no choice. We accept your tutelage in exchange for a permanent (he raised a finger in protest, but a look from the elder silence him) residency with our village,¡± the elder proclaimed proudly. Once more, the goblins cheered.
¡°I almost forgot to ask young one, what is your name?¡± queried the elder, ¡°We simply must know the name of our glorious warrior.¡±
¡°Um, the truth is I don¡¯t have one. At least, not anymore,¡± he said slowly. He definitely wasn¡¯t going to parade around as Magnar the Magnificent. No longer did he deserve to wear that name, after such a shameful betrayal to his liege. Also, it would do no good for a goblin to don such a conspicuous name.
¡°No matter young warrior. I, as the elder of this village, shall bestow upon you a new name. One that will bring courage to the hearts of young goblins and strike fear in the hearts of our enemies.¡± The elder ignored his protests and proceeded to give him his name.
¡°I announce, with the village as my witness, you shall be named ¨C Utho, as my father¡¯s father before him.¡± The solemn ceremony was punctuated by muffled gasps as several goblins held the young goblin in place, his protests gagged by a length of cloth. ¡°Known as the strongest warrior in our history, you shall bear his title as protector and bearer. May the earth bless you and the winds receive you.¡±
The goblins applauded as he rose groggily to his feet, newly endowed with a name and resigned to his fate in the village as its instructor and protector.
Honestly, how hard is it to get rid of your own name?
Chapter 6: Training
The next day, the air was thick with the clang of assorted weapons being swung around by novices.
The goblins were much worse at fighting than he feared. They had no real fighting method or technique and could barely use their weapons. Some had not even fought before, having never left the village. He had to teach them the basics from gripping the weapons to their stances.
That being said, their enthusiasm was not curbed by their inadequacies one bit. Their eyes gleamed when he addressed them and even the younger goblins could focus their boundless energy on training. He trained alongside them, approving of their motivation.
Might as well polish up my basics while I¡¯m here.
In fact, they seemed to be fast learners. The younger ones especially so, as they were just learning their hunting instincts. They picked up the basic swings quickly and their form seemed decently adequate for first timers. Perhaps goblins were stronger than humans gave them credit for. All they needed was some guidance.
When he felt that they had made some progress, he chose 5 of the best fighters to eventually take out for an expedition, ones that had mastered the basics and were eager to learn more. Three were adults who had previously explored outside the village. They were by no means seasoned veterans, but they did have experience making their way through the forest. The other two were goblin children.
Normally, he would never allow children to fight outside of training, but goblins have a very early development and their children were almost at the level of an adult after only a year. Honestly, it was a bit scary seeing a year old goblin wielding a spear better than some adults. That said, his own body was quite young, 2 years at most. So he could hardly say anything, could he.
One of the children was the excitable young goblin girl who seemed impossible to shake off since coming back to the village. She was constantly by his side, seemingly interested in the most random things. She would ask him why he wore his sword like that, if he thought this bug she just caught was cool or not or if he could pick her up and throw her into the sky.
¡°Upsy daisy,¡± he said as her lobbed her high into the air. She squealed and cried ¡°again, again¡± when he caught her. Eventually his arms started to ache. Although his stamina was improving with daily training, there was only so many times he could throw this girl. Exhausted, he set her down and she bounded off, disappearing to harass some other poor soul.
The elder approached him.
¡°She is warming to you, Utho. She usually doesn¡¯t show such familiarity to other goblins,¡± he said. They watched her bop an innocent goblin child over the head to initiate a high-pitched screaming game of chase through the village. ¡°Not since her parents died has she been this out of control before.¡±
It was still a little hard adjusting to the new name. He supposed it would be best to accept this, a name given by a goblin would do just as well as any.
¡°I¡¯m not sure why she¡¯s so attached, I mean I hardly ever spoke to her,¡± he said. Children were not his strong suit and the thought of raising a family had never occurred to him in his previous life. He had spent his whole life devoted to his service to the kingdom. However, he felt comfortable enough around that little ball of energy and didn¡¯t mind her exuberant company.
¡°Well, I suspect that she sees you as a father figure. Not only because you are strong. But also because you are kind,¡± the elder said. It did make sense, he did take down the feared enemy of the goblins.
¡°How did her parents pass?¡± he asked, ¡°was it the White Death?¡±
The elders lips pressed into a thin line. ¡°No, it was not. I¡¯m afraid their deaths were at the hands of a band of humans not too long ago.¡±This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
This surprised Utho. Usually humans avoided the abyssal forest. The simple folk knew the forest as being guarded by the spirits of the dead, with dark arcane magics forming dangerous traps and creating vicious creatures. To him as a knight who frequently went on expeditions beyond the kingdom, the forest was simply a well of mana.
The forest was fed by a deep underground spring of mana that allowed life to flourish. Although it did make creatures stronger, it was not by any means dark magic. The only danger lay with the stone golems that somehow became animated and did guard the forest. These were no match for his previous self, but an ordinary soldier would not be able to face one and as such these parts were mostly untouched.
¡°Why did the humans come? Did they attack the village?¡± he queried. The elder shook his head.
¡°No, this happened just within the boundary of the forest. Not this deep in,¡± he said. ¡°We were a group, foraging the area for fruits. My son was leading us. He was such a kind soul...¡± He trailed off sadly. With a small nod, he left, leaving Utho to ponder the story.
The air was heavy with the sound of goblins training and the children shrieking. Innocent and warm. But now he found it to be a little colder. Why were these humans entering the forest to attack goblins? Why were they there to behind with? How did they get past the golems?
The expedition party left early in the morning, all six of them ready with their weapons. They planned to scour the area close to the village. Although they admired Utho greatly, the adults still feared the forest as many of their friends and family¡¯s lives had been claimed by these woods. As they set off, they glanced fearfully around as the familiar gate was left behind them.
The two children held no such reserves. They were whooping with delight and chasing all manner of curiosities around the party (much to the adults dismay). Utho supposed it was okay, as it was in the daytime and he could easily keep up with the children. As playful as they were, they still kept within a reasonable radius as he had drilled into them to keep within eye sight.
If I cannot see you, then you¡¯re as good as dead if some creature finds you, he had told them. At least the most important lesson stuck with them.
The party moved south of the village, seeing no creatures and decided to turn left. They happened upon a trail with clear bunny footprints.
¡°Look! It¡¯s paw prints!¡± cried the children, almost immediately running all over the tracks. Luckily one of the adults quickly bundled them up and set them to watch out for any dangers while the rest of them examined the tracks.
It looked to be two adult rabbits heading in the same direction. From what he could tell they were traveling alone. Back in the village he had quickly taught the adults how to track animals and examine their behaviours purely from their footprints.
¡°See here, this one seems to have been in a fight before. It¡¯s dragging its back paw as it runs,¡± he pointed out, noting the extra marks with a stick. The adults studied it closely. To him it was second nature, but to them it was a whole new concept they had never touched on before.
¡°Teacher Utho, where you learn skill like this?¡± piped up one of the adults, a Goblin named Brun. They usually never bothered with names, mostly because for goblins names had to be earned through feats of bravery and strength. Instead, because the village was so small, they simply called each other sister or brother, or shrimp, or eejit. Honestly, their descriptions of each other could be substitutes for names. It only worked because they were so few.
He had rather large muscles and quite smart. He had ventured out quite a few times and of the whole goblin group, was the most comfortable with travelling in the forest. They gave him his name as he had once defeated a large mole rat who had invaded the village and tried to bite one of the children.
A single *smack* on the head with a wooden mallet by Brun brought it down and they hailed him as a hero. After training, he had told Utho in confidence that he had simply panicked and swung wildly. By some miracle, it had connected and he was just as surprised as the rest of the village. After being told how big the mole rat had been, Utho could only shake his head.
Boy these goblins sure are a scared, weak lot aren¡¯t they.
¡°Well, Brun, uh I learnt it on my travels. If you train hard enough and get experience, you can also learn many things,¡± he said, trying to sound confident in his words. There was no way he was telling this group that he had learnt it from the Huntmaster, the Duke of Bordair who loved dragging him along one of his monthly hunting trips in the royal forest. If he had to stretch the truth, then so be it, if only to make sure they didn¡¯t realise his ties to humans.
They moved on, still tracking the pair of rabbits.
Soon, they came upon their burrow. It was a simple open entrance and large enough that they could walk straight in. He nodded to the others and they nodded back at him.
It was time to hunt.
Chapter 7: Hunt
They made camp near the cave before heading in, checking their equipment and making torches to prepare for the fight. There was no point rushing into the unknown. He examined his own weapon, hefting it and getting a feel of its weight.
It was a spear topped with the rabbit¡¯s horn that he had slain. As cute as the rabbit had been, this horn was no laughing matter. It was made of a light yet strong boney material, harder than normal teeth and claws. It also sported a bladed edge which was not long enough to be used as a sword but was perfect as the blade of a spear.
They chatted as they examined their equipment, commenting on their nerves at patrolling the forest. They admitted that it was quite nerve-wracking and they were all on edge.
He had sensed their fear clawing at them while making their way here but was still quite happy with how they had progressed. Before training, they could barely even hold their weapons, let alone venturing this far into the forest they feared so much.
¡°Remember, the last thing you want to do is freeze up. Remain limber and relaxed, I¡¯ve trained you all well,¡± he said to them confidently. They seemed cheered but the nervousness remained. He felt their behaviour to be a tad odd. He was venerated as their hero yet they still couldn¡¯t shake their fear in his presence. He could only hope that it would not affect their fighting ability.
¡°Tell me, why are you guys training so hard?¡± he asked. These hand-picked few were only this good because they trained so much. He had watched them stay behind to keep training while the others would go away to eat and rest. Their commitment to the training had impressed him. Above all he valued dedication and commitment. However, he was still at a loss as to why they did so. It would have been enough to simply learn the moves to be able to protect themselves from the beasts.
¡°Well,¡± one of them piped up, ¡°I like fighting. Make me feel good, swing axe.¡± He thumped his chest proudly, showing off his broad chest (though as he was a goblin, it was still relatively thin).
¡°I want explore world,¡± another goblin chirped in, her eyes glimmering with excitement, ¡°want to leave forest, travel far. Need to get strong, protect self, when I go.¡±
Brun nodded solemnly. ¡°We always scared to do these things. Now Utho come, show us strength, show us to be brave. Make us mighty. We respect, want to be strong!¡± he exclaimed. The others nodded their heads. ¡°I want to leave too. But to see a city, biiiig city. Is my dream.¡± Brun smiled a toothy smile.
Utho couldn¡¯t help but crack a smile too. It was endearing to see these awkward goblins opening up and revealing their desire to become better and live to their ambitions. He was taken aback at how human-like their personalities turned out to be. It was getting harder to see them as monsters that knew only fighting and stealing. Now he could see them as individuals with their own hopes and dreams.
¡°Yeah! Yeah! Strong! Strong!¡± screamed the little goblin girl. The two children goblins were no brainers, however, with simply pure endless energy being the source of their strength. That being said, she had also surprised him. He would never have guess that she would be able to concentrate on the drills he had made the group do and to master the moves he taught them.
It was the rare moments like that that showed him she could put her energy into more than just pure chaos and general annoyance.
***
The air in the cave was dank and musty, ripe with the scent of the rabbits they were tracking.
The children had quietened down as they ventured in and for the first time since waking in the village, he saw the little goblin girl become serious in her attitude. The adults also seemed nervous and tense as they were looking around furtively, shadows dancing by their torchlight.
Utho led the way, eyes straining in the darkness. The light from the torch could only reach so far and the tunnel was narrow and winding. I wound down and around, getting narrower and finally widening into the main nest chamber.
They found no rabbits there, but it was clear that this was their home. Small bones were strewn around the chamber and a pile of straw bedding lay directly in the middle.
The party breathed a sigh and relaxed. Brun looked puzzled as he examined the chamber.
¡°If creature not here, then where is?¡± he asked Utho, scratching his head. Utho could only guess as to their location. It was entirely possible that they were currently active or perhaps the rabbits simply moved on to a new burrow. Regardless, he had hoped to catch them off guard since he suspected they were nocturnal creatures. But something didn¡¯t feel right, he knew he tracked them into here.This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.
Where could they have gone?
¡°I wouldn¡¯t know, Brun, but there¡¯s no point hanging around here. Let¡¯s make our way back and see if we can find some clues,¡± he instructed. They filed out of the cave and spread out, searching for tracks. The children grew restless and decided to patrol around while the adults carefully combed the area.
He feelings of unease grew as time dragged on. There was no further sign of the rabbits. It was like they simply upped and vanished. Something else had to have come, but what?
He had a sudden rush of clarity as he heard a piercing scream from the other side of the bushes. He realised with a cold dread that his understanding came too late. An unknown entity was here, and given the dangers that lurked in this forest, it may very well be outside his power to defeat.
Rushing over, he cursed his carelessness again. How many times did he have to fail before he would learn his lesson? Like a fool, he had rushed into being their hero, without so much even considering the true risk of wandering in the forest.
He was joined by the two children and another adult. That left the two other goblins unaccounted for.
They burst from the bushes and found a bruised and bleeding goblin, crying and clutching at deep wounds in her arm. She did not notice them however, as her tear-streaked gaze was fixated away from them. She was looking over towards a wide group of trees with thick strands of webs strung up between the trunks where a large spider could be seen sitting amongst the webs.
The strands bounced and swayed to the heavy body of a large black spider feasting on the corpse of the last goblin. Its jaws were dripping with poison and mucous, with large fangs that tore at the mangled corpse of their companion. It had a glossy jet black carapace with a huge hairy abdomen with silver streaks which pulsed every time it took a sickeningly wet bite.
The group was shocked into silence, frozen at the sudden loss of their friend and the appearance of such a high-level enemy. The spider finished its meal in two quick snaps of its jaws and spotted them across the clearing. With a screech it unfurled its long spindly legs and leapt down from its web.
Its sharp claws dug deep into the marshy earth and lifted clumps of dirt as it dragged its engorged abdomen to their group, mandibles clacking audibly. The children screamed and ran, weapons flung to the side. The adults stood limply, weapons by their side.
Curses, how did this happen? He despaired. He never imagined such a threat so close to their camp. He thought furiously. Can I protect the goblins here?
The children were gone, but he doubted the rest of the goblins could move. He could see their legs trembling like jelly, fear numbing their minds and dulling their movements. He didn¡¯t expect their fear to be so crippling that they would turn from competent hunters into slack jawed target dummies. Perhaps this was why they had had so much trouble dealing with rabbits, seeing as how their fear was so overwhelming when thrown directly into combat.
The spider was indeed terrifying, a nightmare to a simple goblin. Its eight spindly legs seemed to barely support the monstrosity, standing at twice the height of the goblins. Eight red eyes gleamed menacingly over its clicking jaws, still dark red with goblin blood. Its hairy abdomen was so bulbous and large it could only drag itself across the mossy ground. Utho could hear it hissing as it drew closer.
*Crrtch* *Crrtch* It¡¯s legs stabbed into the soft loam and its body left a trail of gore and viscera.
Fortunately, it moved rather slowly, its own body moving clumsily through the trees. The creature¡¯s most recent meal of an entire goblin did not help its agility either, seeming to almost distend its already bloated belly.
It¡¯s so sluggish, thought Utho, we might have a chance to outrun this thing.
¡°Everyone, run away!¡± he cried leaping forward. This allowed him to shield his party and delay the beast while they withdrew. The goblins scrambled to run, tripping over themselves as they ran full tilt away from the spider. He hefted his spear and faced the monster alone, the softly thumping of feet confirming their departure.
¡°Okay, I suppose facing this thing alone will be too much for me right now,¡± he muttered and turned around. To his dismay, he saw one of the goblins flailing on the ground. She was caught in vine which was winding tighter and tighter around her. Her panic only grew wilder when she saw a shadow approach her. She started screaming, calling to her group who were by now long gone.
¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m going to help you,¡± shouted Utho, waving his spear. He didn¡¯t have long, as slow as the beast was; it was still doggedly chasing them, clearing a path towards them. He tried to cut at the vine which was now constricting her entire body. His spear was awkward to use and her convulsions did not stop. He found himself at risk of cutting her in the process.
*Crrtch* *Crrtch* He could clearly see all the creatures'' eight eyes focused on him now, the way a predator looks at its prey right before pouncing.
A sharp pain lanced under his palm where he grasped the vine. He gasped, letting go and looking at his bleeding hand. He could see why she was in pure panic now. What was wrapping her was a vicious ivy - The Devil¡¯s Whip - a plant species with needle thin barbs running all along its length. He could see blood dripping where the ivy wrapped into her, the needles puncturing into her green body.
*Crrtch* *Crrtch* It was almost bearing down upon them, its hissing audible through her screams.
Gritting his teeth, he snatched a length of ivy and sawed it in half. The pain from the needles is temporary, he told himself as sharp pains shot through his hand, death is surely much more permanent¡for most.
He ripped the vines off her as she moaned from the pain. Flecks of blood spattered on the dark moss. There was no time to waste.
¡°Go, run now,¡± he urged, pulling her to her feet. She struggled to stand on her wobbly feet.
*Crrtch* *Crrtch* *CRRTCH* It was here.
Shit.
Chapter 8: Hunted
The tables had now turned and he was in quite a disadvantageous position.
The spider was getting ready to strike and he had only moments to assess his options.
As a goblin, he was not gifted with much in the ways of physical or magical ability. They lacked the brute strength of the orc nomads and lacked the extraordinary control of magic that the elves wielded.
In fact, as their stature was relatively diminutive and with no real special abilities, it was a downright handicap when considering his battle capabilities.
Not only that, he was dragging another goblin along with him. She didn''t have enough strength to stand on her own, let alone run off by herself.
He did have his weapon. The spear was suitable enough of a weapon to potentially deal some damage. He had tested the horn before and was pleasantly surprised by its hardness and sharpness. However, as a horn tied to a stick, he had very little faith in its durability. Two or three solid hits might just render his makeshift weapon into just a horn and a stick.
Ultimately, he would have to rely on his battle experience from his previous life. What his physical self couldn¡¯t achieve; his accumulated experience would have to make up for.
He also had somewhat nimble feet, an ability enhanced by the training he had instructed in the village. However, it was nowhere near the level to be called a skill.
A skill? Wait, don¡¯t I have one of those? Leap, of course! Surely I could use this as an offensive ability. At the very least, I might be able to escape with my goblin companion.
Before he could devise a plan, with a wild screech the spider struck at him with its fangs.
*SNAP*
He dodged by ducking and they snapped closed where his neck had been moments before. Scuttling back and dragging her with him, he decided to try and escape first.
As soon as that thought crossed his mind, something caught onto his leg and he fell with a solid thump, the female goblin on top of him. Looking down, he saw his leg wrapped in a finely woven sticky silk thread. The spider must have thrown the silk at him as he was running away. Well now running away wasn¡¯t an option and his .
¡°Sorry, I¡¯ll apologise for this later,¡± he said hurriedly to the goblin. He threw her bodily as far as he could behind him. She yelped in pain as she landed. Luckily the vine was now removed so she didn¡¯t suffer anything more than the wind being knocked out of her.
He planted the end of the spear on the ground and braced himself against it as the spider readied its next attack. His experience told him his only chance was to aim for the moment after it struck. Although he would have preferred to go for its eyes, he would have to aim for its belly instead as his leg was essentially glued to the floor.
*SNAP*
Again he dodged, this time avoiding certain death by a hair¡¯s breadth. The spider was learning his timing. But that didn¡¯t matter now. It all came down to if his blow would be fatal enough to kill the spider.
Utho pushed off his spear and lunged forward. He plunged the razor-sharp spear into its soft underbelly, the blade slicing through into the flesh. A red gelatinous goo spurted out, coating the soft loam.
He slashed at the webbing around his ankles as the spider staggered, it¡¯s eight legs stabbing around him in pain and anger. It hissed furiously but did not fall.
Darkness take it, I didn¡¯t cut deep enough, he thought as he felt his bonds loosening. Though I suppose that means I won¡¯t be turned into a goblin pancake as of yet.Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
The webs were finally sawn away from his leg and he rolled out from under the spider. It spotted him and screeched, stabbing down with its front legs. One leg stuck into the thick mud and one pierced through his left arm.
¡°Aargh,¡± Utho cried out, pain coursing through his veins. Blood spurted out of the wound and he felt the strength draining from his shoulder all the way down to his hands. He was also pinned to the ground and could only watch as the spider¡¯s jaws dripped venom inches above his head.
As much pain as he was in, his years of combat experience had pulled through; he managed to retain a firm grasp of his spear. He paused, teeth gritting through the pain, waiting as the spider¡¯s head drew closer and closer.
With a grunt, he stabbed his spear upwards towards the spider¡¯s eyes. It was his last ditch effort at fighting back this horrid monstrosity. Unfortunately, with his back flat against the ground he had no strength or speed behind his thrust.
*Clang* The spider caught his spear in its mandibles, slobbering saliva and venom over the wooden shaft. It had predicted his movement with surprising intelligence, perhaps the dense mana that filled the forest was boosting its abilities as some kind of aftereffect.
With a resounding crack the spider splintered his weapon into a thousand fragments. The rabbit horn fell uselessly onto the mud as the spider screeched triumphantly. It was confident in its victory.
It buried its clacking fangs into his soft neck and bit down hard. He felt venom being injected into his veins as a thick, festering feel began spreading across his torso. Pain exploded within him like a wildfire, with this foul venom adding to his hurts on top of his punctured arm. The spider seemed content to let him slowly succumb to the venom before proceeding with its meal.
I can¡¯t let it end like this, he thought faintly, dying like a bug in some far off corner of the world. Not when I have so much to do. So much to make up for, to fix my mistakes. Even getting given another name. And letting those expectations to be let down once more. Is this all that I am?
But he had run out of options. His weapon was broken. He couldn¡¯t move much or even get up. He had poison coursing through his veins and he felt weaker and weaker by the moment. So weak. So tired. Maybe if he just fell asleep for a moment, he could get some strength back. Just close his eyes for a bit. Just for a moment.
***
¡°AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!¡± A scream ripped through the clearing and he dimly saw a blur in the corner of his eye.
Suddenly, the monster seemed to react to the noise. It twitched its head left and right in random and convulsive movements. Wait are those a pair of legs hanging off the side of it¡¯s head? He thought sluggishly. The spider screeched piercingly and reared up on its back legs, slashing at the air with its forelegs . It seemed to be struggling to shake off something.
The feeling of its claw ripping back out of his arm sent fresh waves of pains through his body, waking him like a bucket of cold water. With a gasp, he sat up and saw a goblin clinging on for dear life on top of the spider¡¯s head. He saw blood dripping down the left side of its face where a knife could be seen protruding from the creature¡¯s ruined eyes.
It was Brun! That son of a bedswerver had made it just in time. He must have jumped up and stuck the spider just as its guard was lowered. He hadn¡¯t taught Brun this particular tactic, but couldn¡¯t complain at how he had handled the situation. Although now the situation was Brun riding the spider like he was trying to tame his first horse. If he wasn¡¯t in so much pain, feeling exhausted and their lives not being in danger, he would have found the sight quite funny to watch.
But now was not the time for such flights of fancy.
He snatched up the horn off the ground and yelled out as loudly as he could.
¡°Leap!¡±
He drove himself off the ground as hard as he could with his last remaining strength, propelling him almost into the canopy above. His left arm was useless but his right was fine to put all his weight into this one blow. He aimed for the creature¡¯s neck, where its black shell did not cover and matted hair could not protect it.
For a split second, he met Brun¡¯s eyes with his own and they held eye contact long enough for Brun to realise what he was trying to do. The goblin held on as hard as he could until the last second before letting go and rolling off the spider right before Utho struck it square in the neck.
He placed his entire weight behind the blow, bracing his elbow against his side. The horn cut into his palm where he gripped it but he could barely feel it. All he could feel was the resistance of the creature¡¯s neck against his bodyweight. Slamming into its body, he felt the tip slice through the spider¡¯s soft neck and its head dropping like a sack onto the ground. Not a single screech, skitter or hiss, it was dead.
He bounced off and thumped painfully onto the ground. The spider¡¯s body collapsed behind him, a dark mass of legs and hair.
*ding*
[You have acquired a new skill ¨C Venom Sting]
[You have acquired a new skill ¨C Web Shot]
[You have acquired a new skill ¨C Poison Resistance 1]
Utho barely heard the voice listing off his new skills before passing out cold, finally succumbing to the venom.
Chapter 9: Plans
He was fading in and out of consciousness, unable to tell if he was awake or asleep.
[Skill ¨C Poison resistance 1 ¨C activated]
[Poison is being nullified]
He could feel the poison running through his veins with each heartbeat. Ever so slowly, the poison seemed to be dissipating. His drowsiness was wearing off and he felt himself coming back in reality. Wearily he realised the skill he just acquired had saved his life.
His whole body hurt, with multiple bruises and lacerations as well as a steadily bleeding puncture wound in his arm. Brun had come over to him and was crouched over him, voicing his concerns.
¡°Brun come when he hear scream. Want to help. Utho, okay? Arm hurt,¡± he said, pointing a finger at the hole in his arm.
He was tempted to answer sarcastically that everything was fine and he felt great, but resisted at the last moment. There was always the chance that Brun might take his words seriously. Also, Brun had saved his life so a snarky response was in no way appropriate at this time.
He painfully showed Brun how to rip off a bit of clothing to make a bandage and bind the wound tightly. With Brun¡¯s help they managed to stop the bleeding.
¡°Brun, thank you for coming back. If you hadn¡¯t¡I would have died,¡± he sighed. The goblin¡¯s body was a major hindrance in combat, unable to fend off even a single spider even while wielding a weapon. ¡°I let everyone down and one of us even got killed.¡±
¡°No, Utho amazing!¡± Brun shook his head in admiration. ¡°No goblin ever fought spider before and won. Utho special, save us and fight back. Utho really amazing.¡±
The shining in Brun¡¯s eyes made him feel incredibly guilty. He had his skills, battle experience and even a god¡¯s blessing yet he still could not save his comrades. How could he fulfill his mission if he could not even complete this task?
He knew he would have to be stronger. Not only that, he would have to be wiser. And do this fast enough so that he could still be in a position to find his King¡¯s assassin. In order to be able to complete that mission, he knew he would have to snoop around the palace for clues, to talk to the royalty, the staff and guests. For that he would need fame ¨C enough to allow him entry into the palace as an esteemed guest, as status would give him entry into most areas of the palace grounds.
From his knowledge, there were only a few paths he could go down to achieve such fame. He could become a high priest performing miracles, a famous blacksmith making weapons for the king. Hell, even bards could get entry to the main halls during feasts if their songs made it all the way to the king¡¯s ears.
However, none of these met all the requirements he needed: Strength, wisdom, information and attaining these requirements in a timely fashion. This, on top of fame, led him to the final conclusion, that he would need to become that.
A hero.
He was disgusted to even think of having to stoop to the level of a hero. As the captain of the elite knight guard, he had the responsibility to keep peace within the kingdom and to uphold the king¡¯s justice.
But pesky aspiring heroes kept cropping up, doing whatever they pleased under the pretense of fighting for their own justice. While there were some adventurers that did indeed perform great feats of valor, most simply went around murdering left, right and centre. Bandits, animals and monsters ¨C whatever they fancied as their target, they would blindly hack away without considering consequences. Nothing was off-limits.
Whenever a negative impact would come about from their deeds, they would ultimately leave the clean-up to the knights. A big waste of time and effort for the knights and to make matters worse, if innocent people were adversely affected these bastards would actually put blame on the knights. One example was a group of adventurers that hunted down a Mistmasked Lynx (an endangered species mind you) that was preying on some farmers¡¯ livestock. They managed to kill the lynx but this allowed the local flock of Bloodfang Mice to overpopulate and invade the farmers¡¯ fields instead. When confronted with this, they claimed that it was the knight¡¯s fault for allowing the mice to live in that area in the first place.
This friction between the knights and adventurers had been an ongoing pain for him in his previous life. He never allowed the knights to retaliate since they were technically still law abiding citizens but their antics constantly infuriated both his soldiers and himself.
Absurdly, the commoners usually sided with the adventurers. He wasn¡¯t sure why they would trust the word of some dirty adventurer against the esteemed royal knights. It was always the adventurers who would ruin things by their selfish actions and the knights who had to pick up after their mistakes.
All that aside, he had made his decision to become a hero. The best place to become one would of course be the town of adventurers, the most eastern city of the kingdom ¨C Rossa. There, he would be able to join the Guild of Adventurers and rise up through the ranks to the point of being a hero.
Ah wait, isn¡¯t there one more issue? ¡I¡¯m a goddamn goblin, how the hell am I supposed to become a hero like this!
Rather than him being a hero, he most likely would be hunted down by a hero in this form. Somehow, he would need to be able to pass off as a human and that was a feat far easier said than done.
Hmm, perhaps I could somehow find a skill that would allow me to blend into human society? Maybe an illusion spell or something like that?
He shook his head, there was no point in worrying about all this now. First he needed to get his party back home safely before taking any actions of his own.
Together with Brun, they rounded up the rest of the goblins. They found the children halfway up a tree, whereupon the little female goblin squealed and launched herself at him.
¡°You found us! Waaah I was so scared,¡± she cried, choking out the words through her tears.
¡°There, there,¡± he said patting her head, ¡°it¡¯s all going to be alright.¡±
The female goblin was in a lot of pain but her life was not in danger, the vine already having been removed. Together with Brun, they carried her back to the village.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
On the way, they encountered a solitary rabbit. Although he was tired and wanted to simply avoid the monster altogether, they young goblins wanted to prove themselves. After the shame of running away from combat, they decided to put their training to use and restore their pride as goblin warriors. They look at Utho with expectant eyes and he relented.
¡°Okay, but be careful you hear me,¡± he ordered.
¡°Yessir,¡± they agreed and crept up to the rabbit. They circled around it on either side, surrounding the rabbit.
¡°YAAAAAH,¡± they both screamed, jumping out from the bushes at the same time. The rabbit froze, trying to assess the threats coming from both sides. It decided to attack the female goblin and darted at her.
It was too easy for her. She sidestepped its leap and thwacked it in its back with her club with an overhand swing, instantly breaking its spine. She finished off the beast with a forceful *crack* directly between the ears, blood pooling on the pure white fur.
She was exceedingly happy with her success and crowed at the other goblin child who sulked unhappily. Utho couldn¡¯t help but sigh in a combination of relief and exasperation. For such a precocious child, she is have a knack for violence and combat.
Packing the rabbit away, they reached the village without any other issues.
***
¡°You defeated a spider?¡± gaped the elder slack jawed, halfway through rebandaging his arm. For some reason he had a distinct sense of deja-vu.
The villagers had greeted them when they entered, tutting at their wounds and ushered the party straight to the great hall. There they were receiving proper treatment for their wounds. Although the children had received no wounds, the adults still ordered them to rest. Now they sat in a corner with their friends, recounting their tales with great enthusiasm.
He had received the worst wounds, with the female¡¯s wounds being relatively shallow. He had a hole clean through his arm but fortunately it had not broken his bones. However, even with a goblins natural regeneration rate, it would take him almost a month to heal completely. It was lucky he was struck in his non-preferred hand or else he would be almost completely incapacitated.
That said, the goblins were awestruck at this news.
¡°Yes. Utho killed spider. Great hero,¡± Brun said proudly, thumping him solidly on the back. The fool didn¡¯t know how to hold back.
The elder finished setting the sling for his arm and shook his head.
¡°Utho, the spider beasts in this forest are among the most fearsome of creatures. Greater than kobolds, serpants and even orcs. They grow to a monstrous size and can devour our kin whole. The fact that you defeated such a beast with your own hands is a true testament to your power. You must be the one to lead us, as our mighty warrior and chief!¡± the elder proclaimed, his old goblin eyes shining as much as old goblin eyes could.
The rest of the villagers, crammed into the great hall as well gave a great cheer.
¡°Our leader!¡±
¡°Our savior!¡±
¡°Our hero!¡±
He could feel pride swelling up within him. They were cheering him on. But he forcibly suppressed these feelings he was having. The goblins were perfectly happy that there was only one casualty on this venture but he was far from comfortable with their praise.
This accomplishment alone wasn¡¯t worthy of praise given his past achievements. As a knight he¡¯d fought of much more fearsome monsters than this, fought in several wars and completed far more dangerous quests.
¡°Listen, everyone, listen,¡± he said, as their enthusiasm slowly calmed down. ¡°I cannot stay here. I have a dangerous mission that I must complete alone. It is of utmost importance and I must not delay on my journey.¡±
He saw their faces fall in unison, shocked by his sudden announcement and realizing that their chosen hero was leaving them. He did feel bad that he was departing so soon but he couldn¡¯t delay. He already spent so long teaching them how to fend for themselves.
¡°Well young one,¡± the elder spoke after a moment of silence, ¡°won¡¯t you at least stay to heal your wounds first?¡±
¡°I can heal on the road elder, you don¡¯t need to worry for my sake,¡± Utho assured him. He was confident with his own abilities in avoiding detection from monsters, when he wasn¡¯t distracted by their cuteness of course. Even with a broken arm, his legs were in perfect condition and he had his skills.
Brun, although saddened, seemed to accept his decision. ¡°If Utho must leave, then Utho can leave,¡± he confirmed solemnly. While he had Brun¡¯s respect before, he was now an idol to Brun after their battle together. He seemed to have gained his complete and utter trust.
Much like the knights I used to command, he thought to himself sadly.
Having made his announcement however, he couldn¡¯t simply leave like this. He needed to give these goblins hope and a way to keep their morale high.
¡°I know this is a sad time, but we all knew that I would have to leave eventually. That time has come much faster than we expected I guess. I¡¯ve taught you how to defend yourselves. How to fight. Now you must learn to live on your own and make me proud,¡± he stated. The goblins were nodding, understanding his words but still unhappy.
¡°In time, when my quest is complete,¡± he continued, ¡°I will return and I hope you¡¯ll accept me as your chief then.¡±
Their expressions turned from depressed, to surprised. Then once they grasped the meaning behind his intentions, their expressions turned simply gleeful. They cheered, hugged and sobbed together.
He was surprised that they could be so emotional about such a small matter as one goblin¡¯s presence but he supposed they had had a rough time living before he had arrived.
***
They celebrated that night, roasting the rabbit they had brought back. The goblins sat around the fire chatting and hollering through the night. The children ran amok but their parents didn¡¯t mind as they felt as young and free as the children were. Their warrior wasn¡¯t abandoning them. He was going to be their chief!
Before the hunt he hadn¡¯t thought about what he¡¯d do once he found the assassin. He was purely consumed by his task and gave no thought of the consequences afterwards, of what his life would entail after he achieved his goals. In all honesty, he had made the assumption that he¡¯d reveal his identity as the disgraced knight revived as a goblin and they kingdom would naturally accept him back into their folds.
But he knew humans too well. They feared monsters, just as he had sought to crush them to fulfill his role as a knight. They would never be able to accept that the once strongest knight in the realm was now some kind of small green monster. That was before he was reincarnated as a monster himself.
Although he found the goblins to be a barbaric and uncivilized bunch at the start, after spending time with them, listening to their thoughts and living in their community he found them to be quite endearing. The children were unruly and really not all that cute, but still acted like the way children normally do. The adults were unintelligent but they were reasonable and had their own aspirations.
He felt, given enough education and guidance, they could really live as a proper established race like the elves or dwarves. Maybe even create a town safe from the dangers of mindless beasts and creatures that threatened their lives on a daily basis.
He was jerked out of his deep reverie by a huge plate of rabbit thumped down in front of him by some goblins. They crowded around him once more, watching him with expectant eyes.
He obliged, grabbing the closest leg of rabbit and taking a big bite out of it.
And then yelling as he realised his mouth was filled with cockroaches. Oh no this meat is way too crunchy to be meat.
He was crying with abject terror as ten burly goblins pinned him down on the ground. The cheeky goblin brat knelt down to force feed him wiggling cockroaches from her spoon, held very tenderly so as to not drop even a single antennae.
The others roared gut wrenching laughter as they watched him squirming around with a mouth full of insects, furiously trying to yell in between mouthfuls of insect.
The elder was chortling merrily and even Brun was grinning from ear to ear (that traitor, help me goddamnit).
Only by using his skill [leap] did he manage to break free and stormed around the fire chasing the offending goblins. They scattered, leaving him standing there exasperated with a literal bitter taste in his mouth (I mean when you get past the legs, it¡¯s not actually that bad).
When he calmed down, he allowed himself a little laugh. I suppose that¡¯s a good a send-off as any, those rascals really pulled one on me huh.
He supposed life back here wouldn¡¯t be so bad after he was done with his journey.
Chapter 10: Ashur
He stole away in the early hours of the morning, just as night started to give way to light.
He packed a few essentials ¨C food and a skin of water tucked neatly into cloth which he tied to his waist.
All the goblins, him as well, all wore small loincloths and breast bands made from filthy rags that the village had scavenged. Although they could not be counted as clothes, in this climate at least the goblin¡¯s skin and physique could stand against the elements on its own.
However for him, he was not content to run around with his goblin junk precariously flapping in the wind. He was in for a hard road ahead and he needed the right equipment for travelling. Chafing was the downfall of many a foolish adventurer.
He had skinned the rabbit furs and left them to dry in the sun. As his first rabbit was a while ago, the skin had become a nice pliable leather underneath the pure white fur.
Now he wrapped his newly made rabbit fur around his waist, securing it with a rabbit tooth belt he had made with leftover leather. Over this, he attached his supply pouch securely.
Now he could move quickly while still carrying his supplies.
He had also fixed his spear. It now boasted spider fangs embedded at the base of the rabbit horn. With some experimenting he had found that by using ¡°Venom Sting¡± while holding this weapon, he could trigger the spider fangs to eject venom onto the horn, turning it poisonous.
Furthermore, with ¡°Web Shot¡± he had wrapped the spear head in a sticky but strong webbing that he could shoot out of his fingertips. It was better than any other adhesive he could find and also had a non-sticky threading he could use to make carrying the spear much easier.
The sky was beginning to grow lighter, now a dull shade of pink, light enough to drown out the stars.
With this nice weather I¡¯ll make good progress.
He slung his spear over his shoulder and cast one last look over the village at the gate. It was a good village and he fully intended to return eventually. Perhaps to maybe even make this into a proper town, something more than a couple of sticks thrown together.
Wait for me, everyone, I¡¯ll be back one day.
And with that, he set off.
***
The undergrowth was thick and his speed was slowed by how much he needed to navigate his way around the thickets. It wasn¡¯t only wild beasts he needed to watch out for. Vines with razor-like thorns coiled and twisted around giant pitcher plants that oozed paralyzing fumes. It was as treacherous terrain as one could imagine in the dark forest that he trudged through.
His arm was a hindrance, constantly pulling him off balance in its sling and obviously not able to be used to clear the terrain.
He did encounter another rabbit, nose burrowed in the grass. Although injured, he knew he could easily take it out as a simple thrust with a spear would be enough in this fight. Also it wouldn¡¯t hurt to see if he could gain more abilities by killing this prey.
But there¡¯s no rush. Let¡¯s go about this carefully now, shall we? He thought to himself, spying the rabbit from a bush.
He circled around, making note of the terrain and making sure no other monsters lurked close by.
Then he stealthily drew in closer, making sure he was down-wind of the rabbit. Closer now, he stepped out and challenged the rabbit.
I¡¯ll let it make the first move and hit it with a counterattack.
As predicted, the rabbit snarled at him and charged in a straight-line dash. He side stepped and thrust his spear perfectly in a well-timed blow to its heart. It squealed pitifully as it died.
No alerts came up notifying him of new abilities.
Perhaps rabbits only have the one skill? He wondered.
He had used the goblin girl¡¯s move, which he had to admit was an improvement to his first strategy. It lowered his chances of getting impaled, should his first strike fail and gave a much higher chance to fatally wound it. However, it needed an individual with sharp senses and quick reactions.
She was quite adept, a natural at combat and had impressed him the most with her improvement. He had faith that she would be a strong fighter capable of defending the village alongside Brun.
Her personality however¡ He shook his head. Hopefully that improves as well. I guess kids will still be kids huh.
He skinned the rabbit, removed the organs and portioned the meat. Then wrapped up the food in the skin and tied it to a short branch. This way he could carrying his prize over his shoulder without impeding his movement too much.
He set off again, carefully navigating his way through the undergrowth. For a while he passed through the forest uneventfully, avoiding beasts that he happened upon. A Direwolf with her two cubs, a deer with jeweled horns and a troll crouched over prey it had hunted.
He couldn¡¯t tell if he was strong enough to compare to these creatures and in his injured state, he wasn¡¯t interested in finding out.
Time passed by with him weaving his way through the forest. He had made good progress.
He stopped. He thought he heard a scream in the distance, or was that his imagination? He wasn¡¯t sure of himself because the scream sounded somewhat goblin-y. As far as he knew, he wasn¡¯t near any villages the elder had told him about.
The scream sounded again, this time cut abruptly short. His blood ran cold.
Oh no, he thought and groaned internally. Speak of the devil, it¡¯s that damn brat goblin girl.
***
He burst into the clearing to find a lone slime bobbing up and down merrily. It was a large green slime, with a round jelly-like body and no real distinct features or markings. It made no weird noises, save for the ¡®slosh slosh¡¯ as it rolled through the grass. Just an ordinary slime, no more no less.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.
Except for the writhing goblin trapped inside it. It was without a doubt the goblin brat and she seemed to be trying to break out with all her might but to no avail.
He lunged forward but was stopped short with a sudden realization. He had no way of freeing her without injuring her. He could try and slice the slime to bits but that would probably end up with a sliced goblin as well. Building a fire and burning the slime to death would take way too long.
There was a chance he could simply push her out of the slime, but what if he got trapped inside then? It would only buy them a couple of minutes and it seemed an absurd outcome for them if they simply swapped places inside the slime.
The slime was still jiggling on the spot, the goblin girl still thrashing about. She had a look of terror on her face as bubbles escaped her mouth. He could see, but couldn¡¯t hear her screams.
Dammit, if only I knew magic. This would be the easiest problem to solve, he thought furiously. A bit of flame magic, enough to kill this dumb slime would be enough.
As for his current skills¡ He cast his mind back to all the skills he had gained.
Then I suppose there is only one option I can try. Though it¡¯s going to be incredibly dangerous for her. As he was thinking, he saw her face turning blue and her eyes rolling into her head. Well, I guess there¡¯s no time for second guessing, here goes!
He plunged his good hand into the slime and shouted,
¡°Poison sting¡±
Purple poison gushed from his fingertips, spreading into the slime. He could feel the slime¡¯s body trying to pull him in as soon as he came into contact, most likely the reason the brat had been sucked into the slime before.
Then he could feel it react violently. Instead of pulling him in, the slime was now trying to push him out. The surface of its liquid body shivered and spat out the unconscious goblin girl into his arms.
The slime was now a dull purple colour and rapidly shrinking. It shivered on the spot as it grew smaller and smaller. With a final slosh, it collapsed into a purple puddle on the ground.
*ding*
[You have acquired a new skill ¨C Absorb]
[You have acquired a new skill ¨C Shape Shift]
¡°Okay, okay, please be okay,¡± he muttered as he lay the limp body on the dirt. He had purposefully waited until she was unconscious before injecting the poison into the slime so that she wouldn¡¯t swallow any of the poison. Of course, that depended entirely on if the poison could flow through goblin skin.
He started initiating a revival technique he had been taught by the royal physician. It was a chest compression technique, developed by that physician specifically for people who could not use healing magic.
¡°Should the patient appear lifeless,¡± the physician had instructed him, ¡°and show no indication of breathing, this will be the best method for revival. Though, the chances of revival are relatively low. It comes down to how healthy and strong the patient is.¡±
As he pumped down on her chest, occasionally leaning down to pinch her nose and breathe air into her lungs, he hoped beyond hope that she would survive. No way was his best fighter going down like this.
After thirty seconds, she coughed and retched up slime water, spewing a green puddle next to her. She drew in a raspy, gasping breath and her eyes opened wide.
¡°Ahhhhhhhhh,¡± she yelled, seeing his face so close to hers. For some reason he was struck with a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu for this exact moment. An old grizzly goblin face loomed in his mind¡¯s eye but vanished as soon as he tried to capture the imagine in his head. Regardless, it appeared she was okay now. He sighed in relief.
He went about to set up camp, collecting kindling and wood for a fire. He struck a flint that the elder had given him and coaxed a flame into life.
He sat down and gave a long hard stare at the goblin girl. She looked miserable, still sodden from her encounter with the slime and clutching at the fur he had draped over her. He couldn¡¯t help but worry that a bit of poison had gotten into her system, but he didn¡¯t have the luxury to fawn over her like his own child.
¡°Okay kid, why are you here. You know you shouldn¡¯t be wandering the forest on your own,¡± he growled in his most menacing voice. He had to play to tough guy to make sure she¡¯d learn her lesson.
¡°I wasn¡¯t wandering. Was following you,¡± she mumbled into the fur. Of course, she was an adept tracker on top of being a talented fighter. Together with her personality, it made for a most deadly and frustrating combination as she would be able to get up to the most annoying of hijinxes she could imagine to do.
¡°Well, it¡¯s dangerous and you shouldn¡¯t be travelling alone anyway,¡± he said, as resolutely as he could, ¡°if you got injured or even killed, how would I tell the elder? How could I possibly explain to him this situation?¡±
She looked glum, her eyes cast down to her feet. He hoped he wasn¡¯t overselling it, but some tough love was the only thing he could use to make sure she wouldn¡¯t follow him again.
¡°Well,¡± he continued, ¡°I¡¯m not angry at you, I¡¯m just disappointed. But if you¡¯ve learned your lesson, then everything be okay and you can go back to the village. Got it?¡±
He stared pointedly at her and watched her nod her head once, still looking down at the ground. He felt triumphant, he had managed to properly discipline a child! He was by no means good with children and to be able to reach an understanding with this precocious wild child was quite an achievement for him.
Then she looked up and his buoyant heart started to sink. She wore a sly grin that she had been hiding the whole time. He saw the flames of rebellion still burning strongly in her eyes. She was not defeated by any means and seemed about ready to counterattack.
¡°Okay mister Utho, since everything is okay now, we can go together?¡± she said with a wide grin.
Not a direct attack, he thought warily, she¡¯s looking for an opening.
¡°Um, well you need to go back to the village now. I¡¯m leaving and I can¡¯t go back to take you there,¡± he said cautiously. He felt the sinking feeling reach his stomach as he said his words and an inkling of what she¡¯d say next blossomed into tiny butterflies that flitted in his belly.
Please don¡¯t say what I think you¡¯re going to say, he thought desperately.
¡°Well you just said I shouldn¡¯t travel alone and it¡¯s dangerous. So how can I go back now,¡± she said sweetly.
Yep, that¡¯s exactly what I thought you were going to say.
The floor rushed out from under him as he realised he was caught in an inescapable trap.
It would be a full two days to return the child and make his way back to this spot. That wasn¡¯t counting any monsters he¡¯d encounter on the way. No doubt as well the villagers would make a huge fuss and he doubted the little ankle-biter would let him drop her off so easily.
He estimated a four full days to get back to the progress he¡¯d make so far. All just to drop his kid off at the village.
His mind was racing. There must be some loophole, some way to argue against her and to change the situation into his favour.
He saw she was sitting up, all trace of her previous melancholy was gone like snow in the summer sun. A shit-eating grin stretched from ear to ear.
When did she set up her trap? When exactly was he caught with no way out? Since when was she SO GODDAMN SMART?
He hung his head, the very picture of gloom.
¡°Very well, you travel with me,¡± he sighed, utterly defeated. By a tiny goblin girl, no less.
She whooped with joy, springing up and dancing with pure elation, almost throwing the fur in the fire in sheer happiness.
¡°Okay. Okay. Settle. Down.¡± he growled menacingly and she instantly sat back down, completely at attention. Her eyes were wide as she sensed his open bloodlust.
¡°First we set some ground rules. You must listen to everything that I say. Everything. No if¡¯s and or buts (He saw her stifle a giggle at the word). Also, you will set up camp every time we stop. Everytime. No complaints, no dawdling. You will be doing hard work because you asked for it.¡±
He paused. She was listening to each word intently and gave no negative reactions to his stipulations. She wasn¡¯t a bad kid and given that she was young, she¡¯d learn to be wiser in their travels in good time. Also as a fighter, she wouldn¡¯t be much of a burden to him in combat. Maybe it wasn¡¯t the worst deal in the world.
¡°You will also return back to the village once I decide that you are ready to travel on your own.¡± He continued. ¡°Now. I guess there¡¯s one last thing to do.¡±
She seemed slightly upset at the prospect that she¡¯d eventually have to return, but her curiosity was still piqued. ¡°What else do we need to do?¡±
¡°I need to give you a name,¡± he said, satisfied now at her dumbfounded expression. She squeaked slightly before being able to speak.
¡°Wha-what do you mean give me a name? Only heroes get names. Like Brun. Like Utho!¡± she complained, but her eyes shining like starlight gave away her real feelings.
¡°Well, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re a hero yet. I¡¯m just giving you a name because it¡¯s easier for me,¡± he said, ¡°and I have an idea of what I want to call you.¡±
He savoured the look of terror on her face as she realised he held the fate of her name in his hands. In the very hands that she had cheekily checkmated only moments before.
But he wasn¡¯t that mean.
¡°Okay, your name is ¡®Ashur¡¯,¡± he said finally.
¡°I like that very much,¡± smiled Ashur.
Chapter 11: Golem
¡°So why did you follow me, Ashur?¡± he asked as they made their winding way through the forest.
They had set out in the early morning and true to her word, Ashur had followed his orders to a tee. She tied up the skins with weaved string that Utho had spun himself and pushed dirt onto the smoldering coals.
¡°Oh well I didn¡¯t want to stay in that village anymore,¡± she said brightly. She had a spring in her step as they walked along. Not only that, she was adeptly swerving around thorny vines and dodging snapping plants with a sort of goblin-like grace, not needing any warnings from Utho. It was no wonder she¡¯d managed to follow him so well.
¡°Oh huh, any other reason?¡±
¡°Ummm, I guess it was boring there?¡± she said, tilting her head to one side. She nodded, seemingly happy with her response and ran off gleefully after a small lizard into the undergrowth.
Utho sighed, but he wasn¡¯t entirely surprised by that whole exchange. It was seemingly entirely how she communicated.
Giving chase, he shouted after her, ¡°Won¡¯t anyone from the village worry about you?¡± He found her with the wriggling lizard in her hands. She looked up at him quizzically.
¡°Why would they mister? My parents are gone. No one miss me,¡± she said plainly. The lizard wriggled free and scuttled off.
¡°Not the other kids?¡±
¡°They still have each other.¡±
¡°Not even the elder?¡±
¡°Elder still have kids.¡±
He couldn¡¯t say anything further to that.
***
Just as their journey through the forest was beginning to grow monotonous for both Utho and Ashur, they finally stumbled out of the forest.
The tree line ended and expanded into a flat plain that stretched out as far as they could see. Occasional rock piles were strewn here and there along with the odd tree or two. He could see a glimmer in the distance which he assumed was a river The sky was a deep blue with light flighty clouds high up in the atmosphere.
They headed for the river first as it would be their best chance of reaching civilization. Even with the elder¡¯s despairingly insufficient map drawn into the mud, they had no idea where the nearest settlement was. The goblins had simply never ventured beyond the forest before this.
They kept to the tree line, tracing it towards the silvery ribbon in the distance. Utho had no idea what dangers lurked beyond the forest, so staying close to cover seemed the best option. For now at least.
He looked up at the sky and calculated the river¡¯s orientation and confirmed that it flowed from east to west. This was good, west was towards the human settlements.
*THUMP*
His head jerked around. Ashur had stopped too. It sounded as if a large boulder had been dropped onto the floor.
*THUMP*
Again the sound came, this time they realised it was coming from the forest.
*THUMP*
¡°Get back!¡± he cried, leaping away from the trees. Ashur jumped away as well.
*THUMP*
*THUMP*
A huge lumbering pile of rubble seemed to spew out of the forest. It crashed through the thick undergrowth and with a groan of sliding rocks, stopped at the very edge of the forest.
¡°My god,¡± he whispered, ¡°it¡¯s a golem.¡±
They watched as the pile of stones unraveled itself to reveal a large hulking figure. It looked like multiple boulders had been stuck together to form a somewhat humanoid shaped. Thick, squat mossy legs supported a chiseled grey slab for a torso. On either side sported segmented arms with smaller and smaller stones until they ended with hands of pebbles.
It had no head or neck where a humanoid shape might normally have one. Instead, a glowing blue core could be seen, embedded into the chest of the stone golem. It was the forest guardian, a non-sentient guard of the forest.
With slow motions, it took one jerky step. And then another.
¡°Ashur, run,¡± he said, turning around and heading straight for the river. His physical attacks, as he was now, would be useless. Poison would do nothing against this thing and he doubted even Ashur would be able to put a dent in its core. Their best hope was to outrun it and hopefully get away by floating down the river.
As they drew close, he could see another humanoid figure. Just as he felt about to panic at the prospect of being sandwiched by two opponents that they had no chance against, he noticed it was much smaller and seemed to actually have the shape of a head.
Great, not a golem but this was still bad. If they managed to lose the golem, would it attack this individual? He could only assume that the golem would target the closest being once they were well away.
He had a dilemma on his hands.
On one hand, they were pretty much guaranteed to escape once they reached the river. Golems were slowed and weakened in running water. The waters looked swift and would no doubt bog down the lumbering giant.
On the other, allowing the golem to attack an innocent bystander was against his code of honour. Although he looked like a goblin externally, he still held the memories and feelings of his past life as a knight. To ¡°Protect and Save¡± was their code. This was, to some extent, interpretable in regards to what the words actually referred to.
To him the words meant: ¡°Protect the weak. Save the innocent.¡±
That being said, slowing down to take this person with them might put them at risk of the golem catching up.
¡°There¡¯s a mister at the river,¡± Ashur said, pointing, ¡°let¡¯s take him with us.¡±
Yes, I suppose there¡¯s no point in debating.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
¡°Okay, but we¡¯ll need to be quick,¡± he huffed back. His stamina was getting better but he was still not in good shape.
As they approached, it looked as if the figure was kneeling by the river, staring into the river.
They yelled out to grab the person¡¯s attention and the figure turn around, standing up.
It wore a dark brown cloak, obscuring its features, but was undoubtedly not a golem. It looked to be human, but he couldn¡¯t be sure. Something didn¡¯t seem human about this individual.
It waved at them and incredibly, started walking towards them in a casual stride. Did this lunatic not see the hulking golem tearing up the earth as it chased them?
¡°Go into the river! Into the river,¡± he shouted in an attempt to direct the person. They stopped, seemingly confused by his instructions.
The golem gave a grinding roar as it saw the third figure, putting on a burst of speed.
The figure had turned back to the river and looked about ready to kneel down again. Utho had enough, this person seemed too crazy to take along with them. Also, if they weren¡¯t crazy, then surely they must be crazy strong to ignore a charging golem.
That didn¡¯t seem to match Ashur¡¯s conclusion as she dashed forward, grabbing the hem of the individual¡¯s cloak.
¡°Come on mister, let¡¯s go!¡± she said, tugging on the cloak. A clasp must have come loose as the cloak came loose and was pulled over the person¡¯s head and onto the grass.
However, what was underneath was not a person at all. No, it was a golem as he had feared.
But not a golem that he¡¯d ever seen before.
It had a metallic mask-like face, with silvery lines embedded into the grey metal. Two glowing blue eyes peered out of silvery eye sockets. It had magic inscriptions etched into the mask, written all the way down to its torso. It had a smooth embossed metal breastplate built into the upper region, which tapered gradually into its waist. Its legs were slender, yet seemed reinforced with silvery plates, studded along its length with more blue gems. Its arms were the same, with fists clenched in gauntlets of steel.
He had never seen this much detail in palace sculptures let alone a golem wandering in the wild. The golem was perfect in every sense of the word.
Before he could react, it struck at Ashur with an incredibly quick punch.
She twisted out of the way at the last second but its fist still managed to graze her arm. She cried out in pain, clutching her arm.
¡°Get back Ashur,¡± he barked at her, glancing at her arm. He didn¡¯t think it would be broken, but with the speed of that punch she would be wearing a nice big bruise for a while.
¡°Mister,¡± she said through gritted teeth, ¡°I¡¯m sorry we aren¡¯t here to fight you, there¡¯s a golem coming and we wanted to help you.¡±
No you idiot, you can¡¯t reason with golems. It already tried to kill you, get back already.
chirped the golem brightly.
Huh?
the golem continued. Its voice was neutral and somewhat tinny. It reverberated from a grill underneath the mask.
Utho was floored. Forget sentience as a golem. It could speak as well! (and so eloquently at that)
¡°We got it from the White Death,¡± Ashur said proudly, showing off the white fur coat Utho had made for her, her injury instantly forgotten. He had limited talents for making clothing so it was more of a fur poncho than anything.
¡°Um, guys, I think we should get out of here,¡± he began. The giant was slow, but the thud of rock on grass was getting louder.
The golem¡¯s eyes seemed to be pulsing as it leaned down to admire the fur.
¡°Yep. Yep! Ashur is very strong, strongest in her village!¡± she boasted, positively glowing with pride.
Did the golem just blink? I think it blinked. Praise the Light, it has eyelids!
¡°Hey guys, let¡¯s cut the chat we kind of have a situation on our hands¡¡± he started getting nervous. It was great that the golem no longer wanted to kill them and that Ashur now had a friend. However, the golem was uncomfortably close. If they dawdled any longer, they would have no choice but to fight the forest guardian. ¡°Can we get a move on?¡±
This golem was getting way too carried away, swept up in its praise of Ashur. Ashur normally didn¡¯t mind these praises either, but she too was getting worried about their situation.
¡°Thank you mister, but mister Utho is right. We need to go!¡± she said urgently.
The golem was almost upon them. Utho cursed under his breath and darted to Ashur to pick her up. He planned on leaping into the river. This airheaded golem would have to fend for herself.
the golem shouted the last words as the forest guardian charged at her.
Utho was about to yell ¡°leap¡± but was shocked into silence at the ferocity in her voice. He stopped because he realised she aimed her statement at the charging golem.
She extended her metallic arm with her fingers splayed, palm towards the golem.
A spark ignited from her fingertips and arced towards the golem.
With a bang, the golem¡¯s core exploded in a blazing fireball. The golem¡¯s charged slowed as it crumbled, it¡¯s limbs falling apart as the magic that held it together was undone. Hundreds of rocks and stones rolled and stopped at their feet. With a last groan, the body collapsed. Its core was completely destroyed, incinerated by her magic blast. Only a hole remained where the core used to be.
Utho and Ashur watched in awe, their mouths left completely agape.
The golem cocked her head to the side.
The golem tapped a ponderous finger against its chin, completely lost in thought.
¡°Utho, did you see that?¡± squeaked Ashur.
¡°How could I miss it,¡± he responded, transfixed by the golem. Not only was it built impressively, it could talk and use magic. High tier explosion magic no less!
His mind was racing. He doubted any human mage, blacksmith or craftsman could create such a complex and powerful machine. Furthermore, how had he never met this creation before? Perhaps the dwarves had somehow managed to create this masterpiece deep in their caves. He had never heard of such an incredibly project before, but that was hardly surprising as they were a very secretive race.
The golem finally spoke, extending her hand towards Ashur this time to shake her hand.
¡°My name is Ashur,¡± she replied, taking it. ¡°And this mister is Utho. He is a mighty warrior!¡±
the golem asked, turning her gaze to him.
Uh oh, I should say something before they get any ideas, thought Utho.
¡°Oh well I¡¯m not that great, really,¡± he said depreciatingly, ¡°I couldn¡¯t compare to the power you just showed.¡±
Lenora¡¯s glowing eyes seemed to pulse in pride,
¡°Can I ask what you were doing out here?¡± Utho probed. The golem didn¡¯t seem dangerous, at least not when provoked. It would be good to see if they could help her so that she would join their party. It would be a welcome boost to their combat abilities.
the golem raced over to the riverside.
Nevermind, this golem is a psycho. This is a bad idea. Let¡¯s get out of here.
¡°Um Utho, what is torture? Is it yummy?¡± Ashur asked, tugging at the fur around his waist.
¡°Hush Ashur, let¡¯s get going,¡± he whispered, pushing her backwards. Just as they were about to leave, the golem was back.
¡°Oh, um Lenora, well we¡¯re just going to get on our way now. We wouldn¡¯t want to waste your time,¡± Utho said with a cheerful smile on his face and a bead of cold sweat running down his green back.
Ashur giggled gleefully as the golem picked her up and set her on her shoulders.
¡°Just curious there Lenora, why were you torturing a gnome?¡± asked Utho hesistantly.
the golem said resolutely and his heart sank.
¡°So you don¡¯t know who your creator was?¡±
the golem paused and turned to look at him. He felt a chill run through his spine.
¡°Well the best for information would be the town of adventurers ¨C Aeston,¡± he said.
the golem laughed.
¡°Oh okay great,¡± Utho said faintly.
Chapter 12: Five Years
As they made their way downstream, Lenora told them how she came to be there.
While she could not remember her creator, she did remember waking up buried under a shelf of snow and ice. After digging herself out, she had found herself in the desolate land to the North, an icy wasteland with howling winds and almost no life to be found.
Winding her way blindly through the constant blizzards and snowstorms, she soon found herself at the base of a vast mountainous range. Here she came face to face with a young dragon and they fought a fierce one-on-one battle.
They fought for almost an hour, as Lenora described with gusto, her magic and its flame breath carving through the ice and stone. Their battle was so fierce and lasted so long, that other dragons came to watch as well. Eventually she had lost, the strong defensive properties of dragon scales proved too much for her to handle. Battered and dented, she was nevertheless still quite proud to stand toe-to-toe against such a formidable opponent.
The dragons, admiring her strength and now quite respectful of her, accepted her into their fold and she had lived among them for a short while. She still travelled up and down the ranges, still searching for clues of her creator. Training with the dragons had helped her boost her magic prowess even further and now she could sometimes best a dragon in a fight on a good day.
She then left when she could find no more clues, making her way down into the land of demons. In the burning and arid desert of the southern she wandered but did not make it far as every creature there seemed hostile and would attack her without mercy. They could barely even reason with her, let alone talk rationally.
After a fruitless journey, she wandered out of the desert and found two rather interesting goblins.
¡°Wait, wait, wait,¡± Utho said shaking his head in disbelief, ¡°you¡¯re telling me you just woke up in the northern frostlands, fought a bloody dragon and then just wandered through a desert? That¡¯s your whole story?¡±
¡°Ooh it sounds like so much fun Utho!¡± beamed Ashur, her expression full of wonder, ¡°when can we fight a dragon? I want to fight a dragon!¡±
Lenora said, a warm blue glow beaming down at Ashur.
Well it hardly surprised him either way. Given her strength and her being a golem, she would have an easy time travelling through hostile territory without even a need for food or water.
But fighting on par with dragons? How ridiculous. Simply absurd, he thought. Even his past self had trouble dealing with that proud ancient race.
***
They had walked quite some distance and had made good time by sticking to the river.
They stopped for a bit to take a short break. Utho sat down and pulled a shard from out of his pouch. It was a fragment of the defeated golem¡¯s core and still pulsed with a faint blue glow. He had managed to salvage a few pieces of the core before they had left.
Utho knew he¡¯d need a way to disguise himself completely as a human once they reached their destination. The problem with that was that all the races naturally emitted a faint aura unique to their own race. In order to be able to eventually make his way to the capital, Utho would have to deal with this problem.
Generally, people in the capital and especially the palace hated all non-humans. They saw themselves as a superior race and the only one deserving to stand atop as the proper rulers of the world.
He had no such superior dispositions when he was alive, but this sentiment was expressed by almost everyone he knew. Getting in as a non-human, let alone a filthy little goblin, would be impossible.
His appearance was not an issue. The ability [Shape Shift] seemed to allow him to imitate any creature he had previously come into contact with. During their previous break Ashur had delighted in fondling his pure white floppy ears while he was shape shifting as a rabbit.
Unfortunately, the effect didn¡¯t seem to last too long. At the moment the transformation only lasted about half an hour before he turned back into goblin form. However, as the skill was based on mana manipulation, the effectiveness of the spell would depend on how well developed his magic core was.
A magic core was the basis for all magic used by living creatures.
Cores are created when mana condenses into ¡°Essence¡± and materializes in the individual. Then, in order to increase one¡¯s magic ability, that individual would have to take in mana into the magic core. This strengthens and improves the magic core.
This process was hard to master and even Utho was not very adept at it, managing only to reach mediocre levels for his magic core.
Now, he held the shard in his fist and concentrated as mana flowed down out of the golem¡¯s core and into his own.
To solve the problem of his leaky aura, by forming a mana core he would be able to control the mana that exuded from his body. People would immediately be able to tell he could manipulate mana but they would no longer be able to tell what race he was.
That, combined with his ability to shapeshift, would be enough to disguise himself as a human.
As he focused, he realised that the gathering of mana into a core was happening much more easily as a goblin than as a human. Perhaps goblins had some aptitude for magic after all.
He depleted the mana from the shard during the break and they set off again.
Great, we¡¯re making good progress and I¡¯ve got a way of getting into the capital as a goblin, he thought.
The plains were being left behind, the rolling hills and rocky outcrops turning into sparse groups of trees. The rocks seemed to be a more uniform shape in this area and they found large clearings between large groups of trees.
As they passed into another clearing, they were greeted by the sight of a great ruin. It was a relatively new ruin, with low walls of stone that weren¡¯t completely overgrown with ivy yet.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
Slanted columns and collapsed roofs told the stories of disrepair. The place seemed to be abandoned, but there could be squatters and bandits alike taking shelter in the ruins as it still could be used as a makeshift home amongst the rubble strewn about.
Utho couldn¡¯t remember any ruins being close to Aeston. As far as he knew, the area around the adventurer¡¯s town had a few settlements but none were abandoned like this one that they were making their way through.
¡°Ashur, do you sense that?¡± he muttered, glancing about without moving his head.
¡°Yeah, seems like someone is watching us,¡± she replied. A goblin¡¯s sense of smell and hearing were quite sharp, allowing them to detect beyond the average range of a human¡¯s. ¡°Maybe a few? Hard to tell, there are a lot of rocks here.¡±
¡°What do you think Lenora?¡±
she said, pointing directly at the bushes.
¡°Oh, well I guess so.¡±
They split into three directions, Ashur to the left and Lenora to the right. Utho cut straight through and reached the wall.
Upon realizing that their position was revealed, the unknown party tried to retreat. Squatters then, and fast ones at that.
¡°We can leave them, they¡¯re probably harmless,¡± he called out.
Ashur and Lenora both came back. Ashur was running along unburdened but Lenora seemed to be dragging something along with her. It was the three individuals that had tried to run, bound together in a squirming tangle of arms and legs.
Most importantly they were human and they were the first humans he had seen since being reincarnated. They looked terrified by the presence of the golem and the goblins and were crying out piteously.
It seemed that they had gotten over the initial shock of being captured and were begging their captor to let them go.
¡°Please don¡¯t eat me, I swear my meat is disgusting and I¡¯d taste terrible. Like eating lemons soaked in pond-scum. Try Darron¡¯s, he¡¯s got some tender meat. Just please leave my flesh alone,¡± cried one, a red haired man with speckles over his face.
¡°Oh no, he¡¯s a filthy liar this one,¡± his companion retorted, his face almost as red as the other man¡¯s hair. ¡°And I know for a fact that liars make a great barbeque, like a nice fat seared steak crackling on a high heat! Me on the other hand, am an honest soul. I never did lie once in my life. Yes I am of such a truthful nature that my bones would rot your teeth and your tongue would fall off at how rancid my flesh is. Honestly don¡¯t try it, you don¡¯t want to find out.¡±
The third person in this strange trio was a woman with dark auburn hair who looked very fed up with the two bickering men. She remained silent, however, watching the group with a look of unease.
¡°Um Lenora, I thought I said we could leave them. Why did you tie them up and bring them back?¡± he asked the golem who was poking a metallic finger into the cheek of one of the human men.
she responded.
¡°Do you uh ¡®question¡¯ every sentient being you come across?¡±
¡°Ah, I see,¡± he said, ¡°Well I think there¡¯s a better way than torture.¡± He could see that the blood had drained from the three¡¯s faces at the mention of torture. Now they watched him expectantly.
He knelt in front of them.
¡°My name is Utho and I come from the Abyssal Forest in the east. This is my companion Ashur. Who are you?¡±
¡°Uh, oh we¡¯re just living here at the moment. Trying to survive in this crazy world you know,¡± one of the men piped up nervously, trying to play it cool. However, his constant trembling somewhat undermined his efforts at casual conversation.
¡°Uwaa, so soft,¡± Ashur had started patting one of the men¡¯s hair, amazed at how smooth human hair was compared to the coarse tangle of goblin hair.
¡°Yeah we¡¯re just simple adventurers. It¡¯s not bandits have taken over Aeston and forced us to fend for ourselves or anyth-ouch!¡± the other received a hard elbow and a piercing glare from the woman.
¡°What¡¯s this about Aeston?¡± he asked the sharp-eyed woman. She seemed smart and cunning unlike her oafish companions.
She seemed to weigh his words for a bit, briefly flicking her eyes to Lenora who stood silently by the group.
¡°The armoured one with the weird voice has a very interesting choice for slaves,¡± she said, with a level tone. ¡°Even more interesting that she allows you to speak for her.¡±
¡°Slaves?¡± asked Ashur, looking up. Utho shook his head. Slaves were made illegal by his king, a law enforced by his own knights.
¡°What made you think we were her slaves?¡± he asked.
She seemed taken aback for a brief second. She exchanged a look with the other two
¡°Well you¡¯re goblins. Goblins are weak and make good slaves for holding baggage. The thing is, she¡¯s strong enough to make good money, enough to afford better slaves,¡± she said pointedly, as if her words actually made sense. The way she spoke so openly about this issue, it was almost as if the rules against slavery never even existed.
¡°Utho, I don¡¯t like this talk of slaves,¡± Ashur said, tugging at his sleeve. He comforted her with a gentle pat on the head and a ¡°there, there¡± before turning back.
¡°You speak about slavery so openly, like it¡¯s fine to just buy and keep slaves. Is slavery not illegal?¡± he asked. Once more he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.
She snorted and looked at him in derision.
¡°Were you living under a rock? Slavery has been legal for 5 years now.¡±
***
He felt a plunging sense of despair. At least 5 years had passed, then, since he had died an reincarnated. Who knew where the assassin could be now, there would have been plenty of time to make an escape after such a long period of time.
No, I can¡¯t let it go like this. Think Utho, think. If there was indeed an assassin, then they would have had to be living in the palace with me in order to place the curse on me. I would have surely sensed fresh malice if a stranger had tried to put me under this spell without my knowing.
The old man was definitely suspicious. For one, he had originally come into the palace as a noble merchant and made his way up the ranks to the position of adviser to the King. This he had done using his skills as a merchant to gain influence within the royal court.
Then, soon after he got the position, I was made to kill the King and Jular was crowned as next in line.
However, he had kept close tabs on the old man from the beginning and never saw a plot against him or the King.
Although he never meddled with court affairs, he himself employed a spy ring composed of talented individuals skilled in disguise and intrigue. There was always at least one member watching the old man at all times, day and night. They had never seen him dealing with any suspicious third parties at all.
He himself had confirmed first hand that the old man knew no magic, arcane or demonic, what-so-ever. He didn¡¯t even have a magic core.
Other than that, he didn¡¯t really have a clue as to who might have been able to carry out such a high-level magic plot against him within the palace.
Regardless, he was no longer on a time limit to figure things out. If worst came to worst, he could simply abandon his quest to find the assassin and help Jular rule the kingdom instead.
Although he was sentenced to death by the boy, he held no bitterness against him. It was his duty as King to make decisions that no other person could. That being said, it was rather annoying starting from scratch. And as a goblin, no less.
At least now he had some time to regain his strength back to its former glory.
***
¡°Um hello? Look can you untie me, my wrists are getting sore here,¡± one of the men chimed in, looking much more relaxed since the goblins didn¡¯t seem to put eating him as top priority at the moment.
Utho looked them over and sighed inwardly.
¡°You haven¡¯t even told me who you are yet,¡± he said curtly.
¡°My name¡¯s Benward. This here buffoon is my brother Beaven and she is our lovely sister Genta. Together we make the ¡®Entriage Trio¡¯,¡± one of the brothers crowed.
¡°You¡¯re the buffoon, if anything. And I thought we agreed on the ¡®Ventria Triplets¡¯,¡± the other one scoffed.
¡°We¡¯re not actually triplets you asinine halfwit, I thought we went over this already.¡±
¡°Both of you. Shut. Up,¡± her voiced cracked like a whip, silencing the bickering brothers. ¡°Yes, we¡¯re siblings that used to hail from the town of Aeston. I¡¯m assuming that you¡¯ve heard of Aeston at least?¡±
Ashur had started grabbing tufts of hair again, causing the men to wince slightly as little strands were liberated from their scalps.
¡°Yes, we¡¯ve heard of Aeston, you mentioned it before. We¡¯re actually heading there now. Do you know how to get there from here?¡±
¡°You¡¯re heading there now huh,¡± she said slowly as her eyes slid to Lenora who now seemed to be contemplating different torture methods, ¡°In that case, we can lead you there directly. On one condition.¡±
¡°What condition?¡±
¡°There¡¯s someone we want dead. We lead you there and you kill a certain man for us.¡±