Chapter 21: First Followers
The return to the settlement was louder than the rescue.
The moment the rescued goblins appeared between the trees, the village came apart at the seams. Children launched themselves forward before any of the adults had finished processing the sight.
"Gii!"
"Father!"
"Mother!"
Children rushed forward.
One little Goblin ran so fast he tripped twice before reaching his father. The hunter laughed through tears as he picked the child up. "I told you I’d come back."
Adults dropped tools.
A child hit one of the returning hunters hard enough around the middle to stagger him. The hunter caught the child and laughed with tears streaming down his face. More reunions followed and names called out. Adults who had been moving quietly through their repairs drop everything to rush over.
Vedas stood near the entrance.
He held his spear.
He had no idea what to do.
Some of the goblin bowed their heads, others smiled at him and even some waved.
Vedas awkwardly waved back.
The female Goblin from earlier walked beside him. She hadn’t left his side since the rescue. "...thank you," she said quietly.
Vedas scratched his cheek. "You already said that."
The Goblin shook her head. "No." Her voice softened. "You saved my family."
Vedas blinked and then she pointed to two older Goblins that were staring at her with tears running down their cheeks.
For a moment, Vedas didn’t know what to say.
The female Goblin smiled. "My name is Suri."
Suri hesitated and then lowered her head. "Chief..."
Vedas immediately shook his head. "You don’t have to call me that."
Suri blinked and then looked around. Several Goblins were already calling him Chief. She looked back at him. "...but you are."
Vedas opened his mouth and then closed it again. Because for the first time. He wasn’t sure how to argue against it.
He looked away.
Not far from the entrance, Arthur watched with both hands in his pockets while Mithra stood beside him.
"He’s changing," she said.
Arthur nodded. "Yep."
They watched Vedas scratch the side of his cheek and look everywhere except at Suri and fail completely at hiding the fact he was nervous.
"Should we help him?" Mithra asked.
Arthur considered this. "Nah."
...
An older goblin approached Arthur with the careful respect of someone approaching something they had not yet fully categorized.
"You are the one who travels with the Chief?"
Arthur nodded. "Yep."
The goblin hesitated. "How did you come to know the Great Goblin Warrior?"
Arthur smiled. "I knew him when he was a baby."
The nearby Goblins stared.
"Watch him grow into that," Arthur continued, gesturing toward Vedas. "Even helped him take his first steps."
The surrounding Goblins stared. Children immediately gathered and their eyes sparkled. One small goblin raised a hand. "Gii..."
Arthur looked down.
The child pointed at itself. "...help us?"
Arthur nodded immediately. "Sure."
Every child stepped closer.
Arthur smiled. "We just need to defeat some boars first," Arthur said. "That’s how Vedas started."
Silence.
The children froze.
The adults froze.
Arthur kept talking. "He fought some boars. Then some monsters. Then after enough of that—"
Several children screamed. "GII!"
Every child ran.
A child pointed backward at Arthur while retreating at speed. "...he end us!" Another had started crying before they finished turning around. In under ten seconds, the area directly around Arthur had become noticeably less populated.
The adults looked horrified.
One Goblin wiped sweat from his forehead. "W-We are fine."
"What terrifying standards," one muttered.
Another nodded slowly. "No wonder the Chief became so strong."
A third shuddered. "To think he survived training like that."
Arthur blinked. "What?"
Nobody answered. They drifted away at the comfortable pace of people who had somewhere else to be.
Arthur looked at the now-empty space around him. He replayed the conversation once and came to no useful conclusions. He gave up and went to find Mithra.
A few minutes later he found Mithra sitting beneath a tree. She was healing an injured hunter while the children surrounded her. Melo sat proudly beside her while several Goblin children played with her tails.
The fox looked proud.
Every child immediately hid behind Mithra.
Arthur stopped before crossing his arms. "Why do they like you more?"
Mithra looked at him. "You traumatized them."
"What did I do?"
She started laughing, and the children peeked around her, and Melo closed two of her three eyes. "I will let you figure it out."
Arthur spent a while thinking about it.
He did not figure it out.
...
Meanwhile, Vedas had gathered several younger Goblins near the center of the village.
Including Suri.
"No." Vedas adjusted Suri’s grip. "Like this."
Suri tried to copy him but then gasped when she felt the spear tilting sideways. Vedas caught it before it hit someone. "...almost."
Suri looked embarrassed. Nearby Goblins watched with admiration. To them, a Goblin Warrior personally teaching them was something unimaginable.
Arthur wandered over eventually and observed for a moment. Then nodded. "She’s doing pretty well."
Vedas smiled. "I think so."
Arthur tilted his head. "She can probably do better."
Suri froze and Vedas froze. "I-I think she’s good-"
Arthur chuckled. "I didn’t expect your standards to be so high, Vedas."
"...wait I didn’t--"
Arthur nodded with a smile. "Alright, so you believe she can be pushed harder. Alright then what should she fight? A pack of wolves? Six boars at once? Ohhh, maybe a Hobgoblin?"
Vedas went pale.
Suri’s eyes immediately watered."C-Chief!"
Vedas went pale. "That is not what I... I would never—"
Arthur blinked. "Don’t you trust–"
A hand covered his mouth.
It was Mithra. "No."
"Mmph?"
"No more."
Then she dragged him away while saying. "Continue with your training, I will take this menace away."
Arthur looked deeply offended.
Vedas stared after them. Suri had both hands against her chest and was apparently waiting to confirm the danger had passed before she resumed breathing normally.
"She stopped him," one said.
"Not even the Chief could stop him," another agreed, in the tone of a person sharing a documented fact.
A third pressed both hands together. "She must be an angel."
Several immediately and sincerely agreed.
By sunset, the entire settlement knew.
Mithra had stopped the terrifying human.
...
Athena had been staring at the ruins for the last twenty minutes. She was crouched beside a section of wall that the roots had treated more gently than most. Her notebook balanced on one knee and Athy sitting on a nearby stone looking at the same section of carved surface.
"What’s bothering you?" Arthur asked.
Athena was quiet for a moment. "I don’t know yet."
Arthur sat beside her. "That’s not typical for you."
She didn’t argue with it. Her eyes stayed on the carvings.
Then Arthur looked past the settlement’s edge, toward the older structures beyond it, and pointed. "Did we check over there?"
Athena stood up.
The stones behind the village were older and more intact than most of what the settlement had been built around. But there were still broken walls, collapsed structures, and signs that something had once existed here.
Arthur was looking at the shape of the remaining walls when Athena stopped.
"There."
Arthur followed her gaze.
A symbol had been carved into the largest remaining stone. Unlike the others, this one wasn’t worn away.
A crown.
"That looks familiar," Arthur said.
Athena turned. "Where?"
He scratched his head. "The vision. Not the dragon fight but another one. Before the fighting, there was a figure. A goblin on a throne. The crown was above him, and it was broken." He paused. "There were other figures below him. Then something roared, very far away like a dragon."
Athena did not write anything.
That was the first sign.
For the first time since entering the Veridian Realm, Athena looked worried. "I hope that vision isn’t real."
Arthur raised a brow. "Why?"
Athena stared at the symbol before looking at the distant forest. "Because if it is..." Her voice lowered. "Something terrifying is going to happen."
Arthur tilted his head. "Terrifying how?"
Athena was silent for several seconds and then she looked toward the ruins. "I don’t know... And that’s what’s bothering me."
Arthur tilted his head.
"Actually... You had your vision today, right?"
Arthur nodded. "Right after Vedas evolved."
Athena slowly nodded. "Then that means the vision happened shortly before the event itself."
Arthur’s eyes sparkled. "...the crown vision might happen today too?"
"Maybe." Athena swallowed. "This is only a guess."
"But if that’s true..." She looked toward the distant forest. "...then whatever was sitting on that throne might still be here."
Silence.
Arthur frowned. "How strong do you think it is?"
"For everyone’s sake?" Athena’s expression became serious. "Let’s hope it doesn’t go above a Bronze Beast Tamer."
Arthur held his chin. "Well I already ran into a Silver Rank Beast–"
"... Why am I not surprised?"
"It was just bad luck."
"Alright starting from now, let’s hope nothing more comes! I don’t want this to stop being an Entrance Exam."
No one said anything else for a couple seconds and then Arthur saw Athy take out a small notebook before she began writing.
Arthur stared. "Your owl can write."
"Yes."
"...That’s terrifying."
...
For the next ten minutes, Vedas could be seen walking around and helping out.
He helped repair the walls.
He carried supplies.
He listened when hunters explained which paths had become dangerous. Whenever someone needed help, he would be there to lend a hand.
One of the younger Goblins hesitated before approaching Vedas. The spear in his hands shook slightly. "C-Chief..."
Vedas looked over and the Goblin swallowed. "Can... can you teach me too?"
Vedas blinked. Before he could answer, another Goblin hurried over. Then another and soon three younger Goblins were standing there.
All holding weapons.
All looking hopeful.
For a moment, Vedas simply stared and then slowly smiled. "...sure."
Suri’s eyes immediately lit up. "Then I’ll train first."
Before Vedas could respond, she charged forward but after one step and tripped. Fell face first into the dirt.
Silence.
Suri slowly pushed herself up with dirt covering her face and her spear was upside down. "...again."
Then she tried a second time while the nearby Goblins stared.
Vedas stared.
Arthur nodded. "I like this one."
Suri immediately looked proud.
Vedas became concerned.
But before he could say anything, one of the hunters who had been helping repair the wall scratched his head. "Chief."
Vedas looked over again.
The older Goblin pointed toward a damaged spear. "Do you think I should replace this?"
Vedas accepted the weapon. Examined it. Then showed him the crack near the center. "It’ll break during a fight."
The hunter immediately nodded.
"I understand."
Vedas froze as he only now realized something.
They weren’t listening because he was a Goblin Warrior. They were listening because they trusted him. Vedas could see what being Chief meant.
Nobody had ever asked Vedas for advice.
Nobody had ever wanted to learn from him.
For the first time, people were looking at him the way he once looked at Arthur.
For a moment, Vedas couldn’t speak.
Arthur smiled when he felt pride, ambition, and understanding coming from Vedas. But then a screen appeared before him.
[Requirement Progress Updated]
[Vedas has gained two more Goblin subordinates]
[Current Loyalty: 3/10]
Arthur laughed. "Three already."
Vedas looked over. "...Is that good?"
Arthur grinned. "It’s amazing. You wanted people to stop being scared." He pointed toward the settlement. "They’re already following you."
Vedas looked around. The younger Goblins were copying how he held his spear. The hunters were watching him. "...Oh."
Arthur smiled. "Chief suits you."
Then shouting erupted near the village entrance and everyone turned. A hunting party had returned, and Gruk immediately recognized them.
These were hunters who had left before Arthur and the others arrived. But something was wrong. There was no prey, smiles, or celebration from them.
One hunter dropped his weapon and his hands were shaking. " Elder..."
All of the goblins froze.
The hunter goblin coughs up some blood. "The area where we usually go... There wasn’t any prey."
Gruk’s eyes widened and quickly asked. "W-Wait! Did you check the Hobgoblin–"
"We did and.. Just like you’re thinking, none of them were there."
The settlement went quiet.
Nobody wanted to hear the next part.
"We saw something bigger."
Athena stopped writing while Mithra’s expression changed and Vedas stood up from where he had been crouching with the younger goblins.
Suri grabbed her spear.
The hunter slowly pointed toward the place nobody entered and his voice became a whisper. "Maybe it’s a bigger beast–"
Gruk immediately went pale. "No..."
The hunter looked at him and saw the fear in the elder’s eyes. Then Gruk said softly. "The Hobgoblins only gather like this... when he awakens."
Silence.
The hunter’s eyes widened before he whispered in fear: "That means... They’re all moving toward the Great One."
Nobody spoke.
The wind passed through the settlement and then Arthur looked toward the ruins. And slowly repeated the words.
"...The Great One?"
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