Red Monster

The way back to the village was safe and sound under Red’s guidance. Even though Red had confirmed the route was safe, he still led the group. He was always ahead of them, ensuring it was safe to go through.

Red returned with a complicated feeling. They won the war, but he didn’t feel like he won. In terms of his personal gain, he gained a lot from this battle. He reached level 11, got a useful skill, and the Storage Pouch. It was a great harvest for him.

However, it didn’t make him excited with the uncertainty that awaited him ahead. The Chief mentioned more reinforcement, but what if that reinforcement never came? What if the kobold attacked them again?

The village might not survive even if the kobolds attacked with just half the reinforcements they had before. That uncertainty worried him, but the hobgoblins and goblins behind him didn’t share the same concern. The atmosphere among the goblins was jubilant. He could hear how excited they were about how close they were to level 10.

There was nothing he could say when the Chief remained quiet. Most likely because the Chief was trying to recover from his wound.

Soon the group arrived at their village, and the Chief took a big stride, leading the group. The guards saw them coming, alarmed at first. But they quickly recognized the Chief. One of the goblins rushed into the village and returned with the last Matron, along with the other goblins.

The entrance was crowded with goblin workers. They didn’t have many workers to begin with, fewer than forty. The attack from the dire wolves and the kobolds killed a lot of the goblins. Only a quarter of their original number survived. Yet it seemed it was not a problem for them because the goblins cheered when the Chief raised his axe.

"We won! We annihilated all kobolds!"

The cheers got louder, but Red noticed that the Matron didn’t look happy. Maybe that was the trauma caused by losing the other matrons in such a short time. Or maybe the Matron also had the same thought as him that the village was in danger.

Red observed the welcome from a distance, not joining them. The hobgoblins basked in glory, having a satisfying laugh while the goblins cheered for them. He snuck around, entering the village by himself without getting noticed.

The goblins were focused on the Chief; everyone was. So no one noticed him sneaking in but one person. He bumped into that one person, Tob. Sure enough, Tob didn’t join the fight.

"Follow me. I have something for you!"

Tob’s eyes brightened, and he quickly nodded, "Don’t worry about your female human, Boss. She’s safe and sound. No one would dare to touch her when I am here."

The little goblin spoke with such confidence despite not being good enough at fighting and cowardly in nature as he escaped from the war.

Red wondered where such confidence came from, but he didn’t pry further. They went to the main kitchen, and as he guessed, no one was here. He reached into his pouch, taking out six Might Cores.

"Good job. Keep protecting her when I am away, and you will be rewarded."

He planned to give Tob five, but he had two extra Might Cores from his absorption. He didn’t mind adding one extra Might Core even though he could save it for himself later since he had a Storage Pouch. But again, he wanted Tob’s loyalty to keep Darla safe. One extra core would not affect his future.

Tob’s eyes glowed in excitement, and he could no longer hide his grin. He received the cores, keeping them close to his chest before looking around, ensuring no one saw what he received.

After ensuring no one was around, he quickly absorbed five Might Cores. That was right; he didn’t absorb all of them, which was a surprise to Red. He expected Tob to absorb them all. For him to save one, it meant he wanted to give it to someone.

"Why are you not taking that one?" Red asked because he was curious. Aside from being a coward, this little guy was greedy too. It was a surprise for him to save one core for someone else.

’Does he have a woman?’ That made sense if that was the case.

"I need to give one of my people, Boss. I need to reward them to keep the operation going smoothly," Tob answered carefully.

Red squinted his eyes, trying to see whether this little guy was lying or not. If that was the case, he didn’t mind adding one more core. But he was not that sharp to notice whether Tob was lying or not. He took out another Might Core and tossed it.

"Here’s another one. If anything happens to my woman when I am away, you will take responsibility!" This was no longer a voluntary request. He paid Tob to work, and if Tob failed to do his job, then he would look to Tob for responsibility.

Tob tapped his chest proudly, "You don’t need to worry, Boss. The war takes out most of the hobgoblins and goblins. There should not be many that will cause trouble to you or your woman. Especially those who joined the battle. I will keep my eyes and ears open."

"Even if some stupid hobs plan to do something stupid, I will report it to you right away like before. I have to remind you that I have no way of stopping the hobs."

"I know. Just report it to me if they do something silly again."

Tob nodded, and his eyes looked past him. "Then I will take my leave, Boss. I need to reward my people!" The little goblin dashed out of the kitchen with a wide grin.

Red turned around and saw Darla walking out of the kitchen slowly. The moment he turned around and found her, she ran toward him.

Red opened his eyes, seeing the unfamiliar ceiling. He hadn’t gotten used to his new home, yet a satisfied smile was etched on his lips. Recollections from yesterday replayed in his head.

Yesterday was a feast for him, from when he returned until late at night. A non-stop feast until he fell asleep. His eyes snapped down as he sensed a movement from on top of him.

Darla was lying on him, still naked. She was still sleeping, yet there was a smile on her lips as well. She hugged him when he returned, and he expected her to cry like before, yet that did not happen.

However, she said something in human language that was fast enough that he didn’t catch a single thing. He only knew she was so happy he returned alive. But that changed when she noticed the arrow wound on his shoulder.

Remembering the wound, he looked down at his left shoulder. A little lower on his left shoulder was where the wound was. The wound was closing as it started to scab. He was not fully healed, but he no longer felt the pain, not even a twitch.

He was about to enjoy his moment until someone knocked on his door. The knock was gentle, not loud but enough for him to hear it. He hugged Darla and slowly placed her on the side.

Then he grabbed his loose clothing before going out. The knocks resounded once more. He opened the door, and Tob was standing in front of his door.

The little goblin snuck into his house swiftly. "I have something to report, Boss. It might be bad news for you, even. The village is about to be in chaos again."

Red frowned, but he had a guess what Tob tried to say. He said nothing, letting the little goblin finish the report.

"I have info that The King Tribe is sending more hobgoblins and goblins. There would be three Goblin Champions this time and more than one hundred hobgoblins. They will also bring a healing potion for the Chief."

He had a guess what Tob meant by the village would be in chaos. He just didn’t expect the reinforcements would have three Goblin Champions this time. They were on the same level as the Chief.

There was a chance that the Chief was not the one in command. That might be bad for him and the hobgoblins in this village. He had known how they fought, using a meat shield to wear down the enemy before joining the fight themselves.

There was a chance that the Goblin Champion in command might use them as the meat shield since they were not from the same village. Especially when they didn’t have the numbers either.

Red hoped he was wrong about it, or else this might not be good for him. He was not surprised if they discriminated just like how the goblins treated him in the past. This was indeed bad news for him.