Chapter 118 - 98: Heading West
"They’re gone?"
Inside the Count’s Castle in Black Lion City, Philip asked with a frown.
"Yes, Young Master." Captain of the Guard Yu Le nodded slightly. "The report from the Public Security Bureau in Yangjiao Town mentions someone saw them leaving town in the morning, but there are no records of them passing through any of the checkpoints in the territory. I believe they may have entered the forest."
"How many days have they been missing?" Philip rose from the sofa and walked to the map.
"It’s been over seven days now."
"I recall that humans can’t stay in the Nightmare Forest for more than three days, right?" Philip placed a finger on the map, tapping it lightly. ’Are they looking for little goblins?’
"That’s a possibility. If they brought enough Awakening Potions, they could stay for a while longer, but not for too long," Yu Le considered, offering his opinion.
"They can’t be looking for little goblins. They were too proud to follow my orders before." Philip slammed his fist on the map. "They’re either dead in the forest, or they’ve scattered throughout my father’s territory, trying to slip away by breaking up their group."
"They’re a group of veteran Adventurers with experience fighting as a team. Would they die so easily in the forest?" Yu Le found this strange.
Philip glanced at him, and only when he saw the man immediately lower his head did he slowly say, "So that’s just one possibility. I’m more inclined to believe they want to leave the Valentine Clan’s territory."
SMACK. He slammed the map again. "Bastards. After taking so many benefits from me, they think they can just do nothing and walk away?"
"Yu Le, report to my father at once. Have him issue a Lord’s Order to mobilize the Public Security Bureaus throughout the entire territory until they’re found. I’m going to shove every last one of them into the mines."
"But," Yu Le paused before speaking cautiously, "His Lordship might reprimand you for this."
"Heh heh," Philip let out a dry laugh. "I know. That’s why when they’re caught, I’ll make sure they learn the price of angering me."
"You may leave." Philip shot Yu Le a sinister glare.
Yu Le bowed, turned, and walked out of the reception room. Just as he was closing the door, he heard a woman’s bloodcurdling scream from inside.
"Sigh—" Yu Le shook his head with a sigh and turned to leave.
Before long, after successfully handling the follow-up procedures for the Lord’s Order, he finally returned to his residence.
It was a small, three-story building with white walls and red tiles. The doors and windows were old and faded, and the walls were covered in creeping ivy.
"Uncle Yu Le, you’re back." Lira heard the noise and immediately came out to greet him.
"You’re back." Yu Le smiled at the girl before him and handed over the Longsword in his hand. "Now that you’re back, try to stay out of trouble. His Lordship said he’s expanding the Guard Team, so you should hurry up and join."
Lira took the Longsword and carried it into the house in silence.
Yu Le watched the girl’s back, shaking his head with a soft sigh. Then, he removed his full suit of light Armor and went into the living room.
"Still haven’t found him?" he asked softly.
"No." Lira nodded.
"Alright, I won’t try to persuade you, but this time is different. The Count’s Mansion has big plans for next year; this is a rare opportunity." Yu Le pinched the bridge of his nose. "Did Luna run off to buy snacks again?"
"Yes, she ran out as soon as she got back." Lira finally broke into a smile.
"By the way, let me ask you, did you see the Storm Brotherhood when you were in Yangjiao Town before?" Yu Le walked to the sofa, sat down, and reached out to pour himself a glass of water.
Lira immediately went over, picked up the teapot, and filled his cup. "Yes, we did. We even saw them holding tryouts when we were leaving. Why, Uncle?"
"They’ve disappeared," Yu Le said, taking a sip of water.
"Disappeared?"
"Yes. The Count’s Mansion thinks they were planning to scatter and leave the territory, but I think they went into the forest and never came out," Yu Le said with a nod.
"The forest? How many days have they been gone?"
"Seven days. Is it possible they all died in the forest?" Yu Le asked, looking up at Lira.
"All of them died in the forest?" Lira covered her mouth and exclaimed, "How is that possible?"
"There are many monsters in the forest," Yu Le said. His eyes lost focus, as if he had remembered something.
"I thought the forest was just full of goblins," Lira laughed. "But goblins are pretty dangerous, actually. We almost had a bad run-in once."
Hearing this, Yu Le put down his cup and stared at the girl. "A bad run-in?"
CREAK. The sound of the main door opening rang out, followed by a cheerful voice drifting in. "Sister, I bought cream muffins and roasted nuts!"
Lira smiled and immediately ran out of the living room.
’Dangerous goblins, huh?’ Yu Le stared in the direction of the main door.
...
"You’re taking your men to the area where we used to find food?" Shan Xi Ao asked, seemingly nonchalantly, as he preened his wings.
"Mm, that’s right." Shire kept his eyes on his men as they sorted their equipment, not looking at the little goblin.
"I think... you’ll definitely need a guide," Shan Xi Ao said, testing the waters.
"A guide?" Shire was taken aback and turned to look at him. "What are you getting at?"
"I’ve flown all over that area..." The little goblin was still turned away, preening his wings and deliberately avoiding Shire’s gaze.
"My friend, do you want me to be hunted down by your father?" Shire looked helplessly at the young little goblin before him. "Stay put in the Fortress and don’t run around. Your mother has only just recovered."
"Erk," Shan Xi Ao was stumped. He mumbled, "They used to say that little goblins should be the Elves of the forest."
"Be Elves, not Ghosts. Do you want to become a Ghost haunting the forest?" Shire retorted irritably.
"But you really do need a guide." Shan Xi Ao flapped his wings and flew right in front of Shire.
"No," Shire refused outright. "I promised your father I wouldn’t let a single little goblin be put in danger."
"Sigh," dejected by the refusal, Shan Xi Ao flew away forlornly, saying as he went, "This cold forest... a perfect match for my lonely heart..."
"How melodramatic," Shire snarked.
Then, he looked at the twenty-odd men who were geared up and ready to go. They were all fully equipped, their faces beaming with confidence.
This time, Shire planned to check out the goblin territory to the west. He was very curious after hearing from Shan Xi Ao’s father that those goblins didn’t seem to need to eat.
But curiosity was one thing; he would still observe them with caution. If he confirmed there were no major issues with them, he planned to absorb their clan. That would bring his numbers up to 150 men, which would allow him to activate [Blessings of the Gods].
Shire knew that goblins, lacking the blessings of the Gods, could only turn to Evil Gods for a certain degree of help. He figured that would come at a great cost. This Blessings of the Gods effect, however, could be used to forcibly obtain a blessing—for both his territory and himself. The effect was just too good, so good he wanted it immediately.
"Caocao wants to go on a trip with Green Egg too." The Giant sat on the ground with his legs spread, pouting, a wronged expression on his face.
"Be good, Caocao. Watch the house. Be careful of bad guys," Shire said, patting Caocao’s arm to soothe him.
"Caocao won’t let bad guys in," the Giant rumbled.
"Alright, let’s move out." Shire patted the fur on Rubus’s back, waved his hand, and ordered everyone to move.
The group headed west. None of them noticed a little goblin with a sugar cube on his back secretly trailing the party.
...
"Chief, the venison is roasted." Red Eyes held out a skewer of venison to Shire with both hands.
Shire took it and had a bite. "Mm, not bad."
After seeing their chief eat, the other goblins began to eat as well.
When they first found this deer, it had been surprisingly easy to shoot and kill. Shire had found it strange. ’Is it really this easy to hunt prey now?’
But he soon relaxed. His men had grown quite a bit. ’Perhaps I’m still seeing them as they used to be.’
"Rubus, come take a look at this." Holding the venison skewer, Shire led Rubus over to the entrails that had just been gutted and thrown to the side.
It had taken a long talk with Agatha before she agreed to entrust Rubus to him. Taking the dog along on this westward journey had given him many ideas.
"Smells good," Shire said, pointing at the entrails. He then tore off a piece of venison in front of the Star Realm Dog and started chewing.
"Eat," Shire said with a smile, demonstrating. "It’s good. Try it."
He smiled harmlessly, constantly encouraging the Star Realm Dog.
Rubus’s nose twitched. He slowly approached the entrails, then pawed at them once. The strong smell of blood shot into his nostrils, making Rubus a little curious.
"Eat. Try it," Shire continued to encourage in a low voice, like a creepy uncle tricking a child with a lollipop.
Finally, spurred on by Shire’s tireless encouragement, Rubus lowered his head and picked up a piece of the entrails.
"Nice," Shire was overjoyed. "Try it, try it."
Rubus tore off a piece, chewed a few times, and swallowed. Then he seemed to be savoring the taste, pausing for a few seconds.
Right under Shire’s hopeful gaze, Rubus lowered his head and started eating again.
"Excellent!" Shire laughed heartily, stroking the Star Realm Dog’s back. ’The dog-raising plan is finally underway.’
"Chief, we have a situation." A green head popped out from a nearby shadow.
"What is it?" Shire asked, looking down.
"A big tree. It’s walking this way," said Broken Tooth.
"A big tree?" Shire frowned, then immediately issued an order: "Everyone, take cover and be on alert! Prepare for battle!"
’Don’t tell me we’re running into an enemy right after leaving our territory,’ he thought with a frown.
THUMP THUMP THUMP. The sound of heavy footsteps approached. Before long, Shire saw a large tree passing through a gap in the woods, heading in their direction.
’I hope it’s just passing by,’ Shire muttered. He and his men were currently hidden in the trees and grass. If it was just a passing monster, they could avoid a conflict.
Soon, the large tree arrived in the area where the goblins were hiding. It then stood in place, slowly rotating back and forth as if searching for something.
"Come out," an ancient voice rang out.
’It’s after us?’ Shire immediately raised his hand, preparing to signal his men to throw the Blazing Fire Glue.
"Stop! This Tree-man means no harm!" Shan Xi Ao shouted from behind, flying to Shire’s side to stop him.
"You followed us after all?" Shire shot the little goblin an annoyed look.
"Successor to the Ancient Will, I implore you to show yourself," the Tree-man’s ancient voice rang out once more.