Red Monster

Red was impressed that Tob could know such details. Of course, he didn’t blindly trust Tob. He knew Tob too well to trust that little coward.

He entered the kitchen to see Darla. "I’ll eat later. The chief wants to meet me."

Darla nodded but failed to mask her worries.

Red said nothing to comfort her, as he was really not good with it. It was better not to say anything. If he said something unclear, that might make her worry instead.

He left the main kitchen. He thought Tob would follow him, but that little goblin stayed in the kitchen.

’Does the Chief really want to talk about the war with me?’

That was something new for sure. He was used to receiving a command, not for discussion. He didn’t think the Chief had ever discussed anything aside from the Shaman and Matron. But it seemed the Matron was not in the right mind as of now, and the Shaman was gone.

Two kobolds left the village hall as he arrived there. The two met his gaze before looking away. It seemed he had left a deep impression on the hobgoblins in the last war for them to act like this.

That was a good thing as it meant the hobgoblins wouldn’t mess with him anymore. He went straight into the hall where he found the Chief on a chair with bandages all over his body. The last Matron sat right below him.

"Sit!" The Chief noticed Red and pointed at the spot in front of him.

Red sat at the pointed spot and looked up at the Chief.

"The King Tribe will send more reinforcements, and they will arrive tomorrow or maybe the day after tomorrow!"

Tob didn’t lie about it, but the Chief told him something more specific. They would arrive tomorrow or the day after, meaning he would leave again for another attack.

"The King commanded us to continue our attack against the Kobold. The King wants the annihilation of the Kobold!"

Red didn’t know the scale of the goblin tribe, his own force, let alone the kobold. So he didn’t really know if it was a big deal or not. Would the war take a long time, or would the war be over in a few days? It was unknown to him, so he didn’t really show any reaction.

His world was this small village and the jungle surrounding it. It was not long ago that he found out there was another goblin village. He didn’t say anything, remaining silent while waiting for a command.

"Don’t you have something to say?" The Chief suddenly asked.

"I am waiting for your command, Chief!" Red responded firmly.

"There is no order for now. I want to have a discussion with you about the upcoming battle!"

Red was surprised that Tob actually got it right. It seemed like he was underestimating the information that Tob had. That also caught him off guard because he didn’t know what to say. What did the Chief want to discuss with him?

He might be strong in a fight, but it was more like he was using his head, not just his brawn. That was how he fought all this time. He didn’t know if he could provide something that would interest the Chief.

"As you know, we don’t have enough warriors and hunters for the upcoming war. There are only two choices for us. We join the reinforcement as underlings, meaning we have to listen to their arrangement, including putting you all in the front."

That was what Red worried about the moment he heard the reinforcement had a Goblin Champion. The village was in a bad situation, losing more than seventy percent of their population in two attacks and one battle. That would put them in a disadvantageous position for certain.

The three Goblin Champions wouldn’t allow the Chief to take the commanding position when they had so few warriors. That was what Red feared.

"Or we can pick the second option to move separately from them. But with our number, we would not be able to contribute in the war. If the King Tribe finds out, we might be in trouble."

Red listened to everything, but he still could not understand what the Chief tried to say or what the Chief wanted to discuss with him.

"That’s when the Matron recommended you. She mentioned you are quite smart for goblins, and you might have a strategy for us to join the battle and still make a big contribution with our number."

There were many things that he could not understand, even though it was clear why the Chief called him for a discussion. He was the only one who survived with minor injuries.

On top of that, the Matron was also aware of how he resolved the food issue, where their main source of food was no longer just from hunting. That should contribute to Darla, but Darla was part of him now. That might be the reason why the Matron thought he was smart.

"Strategy... I don’t know if I have a strategy, but I can explain to you in detail how I managed to kill many kobolds before..."

Red told the Chief how he killed many groups of kobolds before the war. It was simply hit-and-run, luring the kobolds into a spot and ambushing them one by one. He added that his tactic would be more efficient if they had more people for the ambush.

He could see how displeased the Chief was. In the Chief’s eyes, his tactic was considered cowardly tactic. The Chief didn’t bother to stop him because his cowardly tactic brought a result, and the Chief didn’t have to do it himself.

It was different now because the Chief would also become part of the ambushers. He would be one of the ambushers, which would make him look like a coward.

"Can we take a village down with that tactic?" the Chief asked, considering Red’s tactic even though he didn’t like it.

"We can!" Red answered confidently, "I will act as bait and lure them into our ambush spot!"

"But at some point, they would stop falling for the bait. The kobolds are stupid, but they are not idiots to keep falling in the same pit! Or else they would have been annihilated a long time ago." The Chief pointed out the issue with the tactic.

It would be the end of them once the kobolds decided to hole up in the village. They had no choice but to attack the village if that happened.

"They have no choice but to chase after me, Chief. My fire will burn them if they hole up in the village!"

The Chief realized that he missed the most important part. He forgot that the red-skinned hobgoblin could actually shoot fireballs.

’That might be why his skin is red.’

"Then let’s do it! You will be bait, and we will ambush them. I would rather fight with a cowardly tactic than become someone else’s underling."

"Yes, Chief!" Red was glad that the Chief agreed to his strategy. He also preferred it if they didn’t have to listen to anyone but the Chief. While the Chief was not someone who treasured his people’s lives, at least the Chief would not lead them to a suicidal fight.

He thought the discussion was over, but then the Chief said something unexpected.

"There’s another thing. Since you can use magic, does that mean you can also help the children with awakening? You know, just like what the Shaman did to you."

Red froze there, blinking his eyes. A realization struck him like thunder. That was something that he overlooked when he killed the Shaman. Now he was reminded that they needed a Shaman for the awakening ceremony to open the window status.

’Does that mean the new batch of children can’t awaken their window status?’

"I... I don’t know how to do it, Chief."

He hesitated but decided to be honest. He didn’t know what the Shaman did. His memory of the awakening ceremony was unpleasant because he was cursed on the same day.

"But you can use magic. You should be able to lead the awakening ceremony."

It was the Matron who spoke this time.

"But how?" Red blurted out, "I can shoot fire because it’s one of my skills. But I don’t know anything about awakening, Matron. Unless you can tell me how the Shaman does it, then maybe I can give it a try."

That silenced Matron and the Chief. Both looked troubled. It seemed they realized that they had a bigger issue than the war itself.

"Does that mean the new batch of children can’t get their window status?" Red asked.

He believed there must be other ways for awakening. He didn’t believe the awakening was the Shaman’s magic.

"Silent for a moment. I am trying to remember if the Shaman ever told me about the awakening!" The Matron raised her voice slightly.

The war issue hadn’t been resolved, and then they were presented with another issue.