Chapter 216 - 188: Quite a Nice Fellow
Seeing Lust’s clone prepare to return to the mirror, Shire bowed respectfully while mentally marking it with the Star of the Domain.
He used to always keep this skill active on Little John, but after saving him and Mary, Shire hadn’t used the Ability again.
A faint ripple sounded. Shire straightened up and stole a glance at the mirror. His reflection’s movements were now in sync, its expression natural—not the mysterious smile it wore before. ’Is it gone?’
He let out a soft sigh. While facing the powerful Demon Lord, he had been treading on eggshells, his mind racing to come up with countermeasures while outwardly playing the part of a weak goblin who admired strength. The demon, for its part, had seemed arrogant enough not to pay much mind to his "performance."
The moment he received the Dumbing Curse, he had immediately cast it on himself three times. Lust’s clone hadn’t reacted, and in that instant, Shire had already marked it as an enemy.
Based on the feedback, Shire realized the Magic really did affect an enemy’s perception, causing them to unwittingly make more foolish choices. Just like how Lust, even at the very end, hadn’t paid any mind to a goblin who could speak Common Speech, or even sign its name using it.
That contract, however, was indeed bound to his soul. The moment he signed the name "Green Egg," a negative effect had appeared on his status panel.
’If I’d known, I would’ve just signed "Handsome Guy,"’ Shire thought, looking at the Angry Long Horn on the table before glancing at the mirror again.
’Something’s not right,’ he thought. He sensed a problem and mentally pulled up his Domain map. In the map, the red dot representing his mark was still flashing—right here in the Fortress. Shire zoomed in and discovered that the Demon Lord Lust hadn’t left; it was still hiding in the mirror, observing him.
’You sneaky bastard, I’ve got to hand it to you,’ Shire complained internally.
He thought quickly for a few seconds, then suddenly began patting his own chest. "So this is what it feels like to have Magic? It’s incredible. I feel like I’ve gotten so much stronger."
As he spoke, he cast the Group Dumbing Curse on himself again, hoping to affect Lust, who was holed up in the mirror. "Amazing! I don’t even have to chant any gibberish Spells, I can just cast it directly. This is so much more convenient than those pesky human Mage Adventurers."
He shot a subtle glance at the mirror. His reflection still showed no reaction, but Lust’s red dot continued to flash on his Domain map.
’Fucking sneaky bastard,’ Shire cursed under his breath. He then darted over to the dead human Mage on the floor. He kicked the corpse hard, snarling viciously as he did, "Damn you humans, damn you Mages! If the Forest God hadn’t descended to my side, I would’ve been dead tonight! And you tried to ambush me!"
He kicked it several more times, even booting the corpse over in front of the mirror to ensure his actions could be clearly seen. "It’s wonderful to be chosen by the Forest God! I’ve heard that some Races hear strange voices, but now the Forest God has descended right before me and even signed a contract with me."
"Damn human Adventurers!" He gave the Mage’s corpse on the floor a vicious kick. "From now on, I’m the Forest God’s goblin! I’m not afraid of any of you anymore!"
After this performance, Shire panted for a few heavy breaths, then walked over to the table. He noticed in his consciousness that the red dot marking Lust’s clone had vanished. ’Looks like it’s gone.’
’Time to check my own status,’ he thought. Once his breathing steadied, he pulled up his panel.
[Tombstone Artifacts: Shire Merlot]
[Race: Goblin (Human)]
[Danger Level: 0.5, Trash]
[Subordinates: 498/595]
[Personality: ???]
[Personal Ability: Group Dumbing Curse (Remaining uses for today: 1/5)]
[Own State: Advanced Transformation Curse (Negative), Heart of the Brave (Positive, Recovering), Mother Tree’s Blessing (Positive), Blessing of the God of Earth and Life (Positive), Newborn Ant Queen (Positive, Growing), Demon Lord’s Contract of Lust (Negative, Ten Years)]
[Title: Leader of the Forest South Group]
"As expected, the contract with Lust is marked as a negative effect," Shire murmured, stroking his chin as he stared at the panel. "I did get a new Personal Ability, though, and it even shows the number of uses. This must be based on my own Magic Ability."
"For an ordinary noble who’s never studied Magic—and is now a goblin, to boot—being able to use the Dumbing Curse five times a day isn’t half bad." The corner of his mouth quirked into a smile. ’When I use this skill against enemies in the future, they’ll all turn into idiots. If I use it against races that are already dumb to begin with... wouldn’t it be like fighting a pack of complete morons?’
When he was choosing the Magic earlier, Shire had been calculating nonstop. Since he would likely encounter the Feathered Serpent Goblin Kingdom to the north soon, he chose a group curse that seemed capable of handling a large number of enemies.
’More importantly, this Spell isn’t lethal, which makes it convenient for capturing prisoners post-battle.’ Shire lifted his eyes to the "Subordinates" line. ’Just five more and I’ll break through the next milestone. Then I can get Mist Gaze. This is the fastest I’ve ever managed two breakthroughs in a row, all thanks to those Centaurs.’
He glanced around his stone house again, then picked up the horn from the table. While pretending to fiddle with the horn, Shire kept a close watch on his Domain map, wanting to see if this action would draw Lust’s attention once more.
But after toying with it for a long while, his Domain map remained unchanged. ’Could it be that thing didn’t choose me because of this horn?’
Shire put down the horn and shot a covert glance at the mirror. ’Impossible. Someone must have led it here. It seems someone has been secretly spying on my camp.’
’Forget it. No point thinking about it. The contract’s been signed, and at least it’s only for ten years.’ He gave a self-deprecating laugh. In that situation, he’d had no choice but to bite the bullet and sign. ’As a goblin, I might not even live for ten years.’
Just as he stood up to call his subordinates to help him dispose of the Mage’s corpse, Shire suddenly saw a line of text on his notebook.
"Be careful. The contractor of Jealousy has already seen you."
Shire’s brow furrowed once more. ’Well now... this Lust is a surprisingly decent fellow.’