Red Monster

Chapter 70: Big Movement

Red could notice something different in the jungle. The moment he stepped into the jungle, he could sense the difference. He didn’t know what the difference was as he continued his patrol.

He had informed Matron that the area was safe for hunting, and he ordered the few experienced hunters to go out in a group. They formed two groups and followed his direction.

He left after escorting the team, and now here he was, doing the patrol. It became more obvious as he went further and further. Uneasiness started to creep out; he became more cautious than usual. He must be careful until he can identify the problem.

It took him a while to realize what the difference was. The jungle was too quiet; he could not sense the beast’s movement. He tried to recall the path he went through and realized he didn’t encounter any beast.

Dire Lupus was completely gone, and the number of Rabbon thinned out. Something was amiss, as if a predator wiped them out, or maybe something similar to the Direwolf King. Or maybe the kobold had done something.

The realization that a predator similar to the Direwolf King might be in the same area was chilling. His breathing ragged for a moment, but he quickly calmed down.

"It’s not a predator..."

A single predator would not wipe out all those beasts. If it were a predator, it would be gradual, not overnight like this. It was not a predator, which meant the kobold.

The kobold might hunt them all to take the village’s source of food. They wanted to starve the village. Or maybe magic was in play. There was a chance they might lure all the beasts out of their habitat with magic.

Red slowed down and was more patient, scouring the area carefully. It took less time to find his first group of kobolds. Certainly faster than yesterday despite taking his time to escort the hunter.

He hid beyond the canopy, eyeing them through the small gaps. He was even more careful than yesterday because this was a big group. It took him more time to identify the group because of how cautious he was. The group consisted of fifteen kobolds, and the highest level was ???.

Kobold Warrior

Level: ???

The kobold was wearing full body armor, from head to the leg. There were not many gaps aside from the fact that he could use it if he ever attempted to kill it. There was one more kobold where Appraisal didn’t work.

Kobold Archer

Level: ???

But he could identify the rest with his Appraisal. The highest level he could identify was level 13 kobold. There were two level 13 kobolds and two level 12 kobolds. The rest were level 10 kobolds and below.

Red didn’t even consider ambushing them or killing the low-level kobolds, let alone hunting them. He only had 17 arrows, and he could not retrieve them even if he could kill them. Worse, he could not get the loot with two kobolds above level 13.

Then he noticed that the level 8 and level 9 kobolds were carrying Rabbon in their hand. This confirmed his suspicion that the beasts were hunted. They tried to get rid of the source of their food, luring them out further from the village.

This got him a question: why didn’t they attack the village? If the Dire Wolf pack was their doing, then they should know the village lost most of its fighters. The kobold easily outnumbered the village based on the number of kobolds he hunted. Why did the kobold fight this way?

It didn’t take long for him to find the answer, the Shaman. The old goblin was the only one who was capable of using magic. He had seen him blasting his magic at the wolf, the Direwolf King, and he was even one of the victims.

’They don’t know the Shaman is dead or has disappeared. They wanted to reduce our number so they could get the Shaman first...’

The realization didn’t make him feel better. That made him feel worse because he killed the Shaman.

’If the village fell because I killed the Shaman...’

Red paused the thought, ’I don’t feel guilty at all...’

The village was his home, but that was it. He didn’t care about the goblins who lived there, just like how they didn’t care about him. He had grown indifferent toward them, knowing that he could lead the village because of his own strength, not because the other goblins appreciated him. The village was just a place for him to return and sleep.

’Except for Darla... If things get worse, I will leave with her...’

Red trailed after the group, trying to ensure they didn’t go in the direction of the village. After confirming it, he left the group and searched for the others. Again, it didn’t take long for him to find the second group.

The second group was even bigger than the first one. It had twenty kobolds, and Appraisal didn’t work on five of them. Again, this group was bringing back their games. A few Rabbon, and more than ten Dire Lupus.

This was worse than he imagined. They had food stocked, and thanks to Darla, who taught them how to preserve the meat along with the farm. They could survive for another season or maybe two seasons if they carefully rationed it.

’I wonder if they will encounter the Chief’s group?’

He only heard about them leaving, and he never actually saw the path they took. He was curious about the outside world, but he knew that he was still too weak to wander outside.

Red put away the useless thoughts and focused on the big group. He trailed for a little longer to ensure they didn’t go for the village.

Then he scoured another area. It took him a little bit longer to find the third group, and they were a group of eleven kobolds. He was tempted to give it a try, but he decided not to. He was unable to appraise two kobolds’ levels, which he assumed were level 14 or maybe above.

It had not even half a day passed, and he found three groups. The situation truly got worse and worse. He didn’t stop, continuing his search. The fourth group had thirteen kobolds. If he combined the kobolds he found, there were more than fifty kobolds already. That was enough to wipe out the village, considering more than ten could not be identified.

Then he met the fifth group, who seemed to be a fresh group because they didn’t carry their prey. The fifth group had eleven kobolds, and [Appraisal] worked on all of them, but that was the problem. Three Level 13 Kobolds, four Level 12 Kobolds, and four Level 11 Kobolds.