The Forest Feeds No Idle Goblins

Evita tightened her grip on her Longbow, her eyes fixed on the distant Evil Throat Army.

The other Centaurs around her appeared calm, but their taut jaw muscles and front hooves restlessly pawing the soil revealed their tension.

Before this, Shire had summoned her back to the Fortress and calmly told her, "The Evil Throat Army is coming." At the time, she had been planting tubers with her kin. One of them had remarked, "Only in an environment like this can our children grow up in peace." She had simply nodded and planted a tuber in the soil herself. With just a bit of water, they would sprout and grow quickly, and she’d even had Shan Xi Ao by her side, helping.

Unfortunately, those bastards wouldn’t leave the Centaurs alone. They had actually pursued them past the Nightmare Forest, preparing to attack their people here.

Evita had seen the tribe’s Warriors fight them before, but back then, she had been in the rear, protected amidst a group of Centaur Warriors. Her father, the Clan Leader, would never have let her come to harm. But now, as Shire delivered the news, her father’s figure no longer stood before her.

This time, she would have to stand at the very front and face those frenzied creatures.

Evita let out a soft breath. The forest’s cool breeze rustled her brown hair, calming her tense heart slightly. Ever since escaping the village, she had cut her long hair short. Her people, accustomed to seeing it long, had found the change hard to accept. Oreco always looked like he wanted to say something, but the words would die on his lips, leaving only a sigh. She knew they all wanted to comfort her, to tell her to move on, but the more they looked at her that way, the more vividly she remembered the sight of her father waving goodbye as their people dragged her to safety.

Only Shire had simply smiled and nodded when he saw her. When she put on her Armor, he had slapped his thigh and said, "The resemblance is uncanny. Truly uncanny."

"Resemblance to what?" she had asked, puzzled. He had just smiled and said, "A heroine."

Joan of Arc. A name she had never heard, the name of a young human girl who led soldiers and common folk in rebellion, a name that brought tears to one’s eyes.

Evita remembered how she had listened in complete silence as he recounted the girl’s story, never once interrupting Shire. She felt a deep admiration for the heroine of the tale, especially her courage to charge on horseback, banner in hand, against an enemy many times stronger than herself. In moments of rest from her work, Evita would sometimes wonder what she would do if those frenzied Slave Soldiers suddenly charged out of the distant woods. Should she rush to the Fortress to warn Shire, or organize her people to flee at once?

But today, those very same monsters were standing right across from them.

"Liberty guides our people," Shire had told her. "Running away is only a temporary solution. To live freely in the forest, we must fight the enemy to the very end."

Evita pulled an Arrow from the ground. Several more were stuck in the earth before her, just as they were for every Centaur. This allowed for a more efficient draw. On the opposite side, the Slave Soldiers were beginning to assemble. The battle was about to begin.

Just moments ago, Oreco had shot dead the goblin envoy who’d come to demand their surrender. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the resentful glares of her kin. They spat viciously on the ground, and Shire’s subsequent words seemed to hammer against the heart of everyone present.

’To survive, we can only rely on ourselves,’ Evita murmured. She glanced at the large red banner, the black dragon emblem upon it startlingly lifelike. The three-meter-tall Giant holding the flagpole, however, looked rather comical.

Evita watched Caocao, who was steadying the flagpole with one hand while secretly stuffing small nuts into their mouth with the other. She smiled faintly. ’It’s beautiful here. Everyone is living well.’

"So, Father, please grant me your blessing, that I might kill Evil Throat with my own hands," she whispered. She slowly turned her head back, her previously gentle, smiling eyes instantly turning cold and resolute.

’It’s just a little ’Holy Water’ trick. Those things aren’t invincible. There’s nothing to be afraid of.’

Evita nocked an Arrow and drew her bowstring, her gaze locked on the mutated Evil Throat Army Slave Soldiers charging toward them. TWANG! The bowstring sang. The Arrow streaked across the battlefield like a shooting star, arcing down before plunging deep into a red-skinned Slave Soldier with a dull THUD. The soldier merely staggered from the impact, then ignored the Arrow in its back and continued to roar as it charged toward its target.

"If one Arrow won’t kill it, I’ll just use a few more." Evita immediately grabbed another Arrow from the ground and nocked it. Just as she was aiming for a goblin, BOOM! BOOM! More Slave Soldiers triggered ground traps and tumbled into the two-and-a-half-meter-deep pits they had all dug together. ’Once you fall in,’ she thought, ’you’re not getting back out.’

She immediately locked onto other targets and loosed her Arrows. Before the battle, Shire had told them that as long as they could withstand the first few waves, the enemy’s shock-and-awe Combat Technique would lose its effectiveness. That would be the moment for the true decisive battle. She and her people would need to use the Teleportation Gates on either side to instantly transport into the forest, then circle around to attack the Evil Throat Army from behind. Only then could they ensure not a single one of those bastards escaped.

SWOOSH! Another Arrow flew. Evita found her nervousness gradually fading. Though the frenzied Slave Soldiers were about to reach them, the front line was a wall of spears held aloft by goblins, like a porcupine’s quills.

It was almost funny, really. When they learned the Evil Throat Army was coming, the goblins had seemed even calmer than her own Centaur kin. Some of the younger Centaurs had even privately speculated whether the goblins would just turn tail and run once the fighting started.

But Shire had told her not to worry about them. The real key to this battle, he’d said, was her own people.

ARGH— The ferocious Slave Soldiers in the front were getting closer. Although a small number had fallen into traps, a huge wave of enemies was still charging. Evita could now clearly see their bloodshot eyes and the spittle flying from their mouths.

’Just have to hold against the enemy’s first few shock charges.’ She once again grabbed an Arrow from the ground and aimed at the approaching enemy, but at this range, she could probably only kill one or two more Slave Soldiers.

And she could already see the Evil Throat Army in the distance, gathering the next wave of Slave Soldiers for another Charge.

Some of her kin around her had started to curse under their breath. Others shifted restlessly on their hooves. Compared to Shire’s people, the madness of the Slave Soldiers was a much more deeply etched memory for the Centaurs.

’Fear is inevitable.’ Evita gripped the riser of her bow tightly, once again recalling Shire’s words. ’The best way to overcome fear is to face it.’

A bead of sweat rolled down Evita’s cheek. ’I wonder if that young heroine felt fear when she faced the enemy’s Cavalry.’

’How did she overcome it?’ Evita stared intently at the charging enemy. A series of sickening squelches sounded as spear tips pierced flesh—the frenzied Slave Soldiers had finally crashed into the spear wall. ’This is the most critical moment of the battle.’

If anyone was frightened by the sight of those things roaring and pushing forward even with several Long Spears sticking out of their bodies, then the next Charge would be like a giant wave crashing against a sandcastle, collapsing the formation in one go. That would be the nightmare moment of the entire battle.

Evita frowned and grabbed another Arrow. The friendly goblins were now right in front of her, blocking her line of fire. All she could do was remain on high alert. But just then, a faint, ethereal song seemed to reach her ears.

The song was faint and melodious, like a young girl whispering sweet nothings in one’s ear. Then, the gentle melody drifted away, replaced by a firm, powerful song. The sound was so stirring that it affected everyone around.

Everyone froze for a moment, but the roaring of the Slave Soldiers before them quickly snapped them back to reality.

But the next scene made everyone tighten their grip on their weapons. The mutated Slave Soldiers began to tremble, clutching at the spear shafts embedded in their bodies. They stopped their suicidal advance and instead began to vomit copious amounts of a red liquid mixed with blood. Then, as if all their strength had been drained, the Slave Soldiers slumped limply over the spears. A few had been so close they had almost reached the goblins gripping the other end of the Long Spears.

They were no longer roaring, but letting out pained groans. Some of them, the effect of the "Holy Water" having worn off, had already stopped breathing. The rest were clearly not far from death.

’What’s happening?’ Evita clutched her Longbow, not understanding what was going on, but she kept her arrowhead warily aimed at the enemies on the ground.

WOOOO— The Evil Throat Army’s horn sounded in the distance. The next Charge was coming, this time with at least 200 Slave Soldiers.

......

"Everyone, prepare to drink the ’Holy Water’!" one of the Earth Goblins shouted.

Cyan Hide stood at the front of the line, staring down at the pale red liquid in his hands. This was the first time he’d been given "Holy Water." It looked no different from ordinary water, aside from its faint red color.

In the center of the battlefield ahead, countless Slave Soldier corpses were strewn all the way to the clan’s battle line. He had watched with his own eyes as those Slave Soldiers went limp on the spears and died on them. This was different from the rumors he’d heard. Scarface used to say that as long as the first wave of goblin Slave Soldiers who drank the Holy Water made contact with the enemy, their fearless charge would terrify their foes. The enemy’s lines would then waver, and the second Charge would completely crush them.

"Faced with Slave Soldiers who don’t fear death, no one can help but be afraid." Scarface had said this with a face full of Pride, sitting on a straw mat and chewing a piece of meat. Meanwhile, Cyan Hide and his comrades had just been huddled to the side, waiting to eat the leftovers.

But now, the enemy’s formation stood like a mountain peak rising from the earth, unmoved even after being battered by the waves.

"Drink the ’Holy Water’!" the Earth Goblin shouted.

"No!" Cyan Hide yelled immediately, halting the movements of all the goblins.

"We won’t drink it."