Chapter 8: Chapter 7: Clash with the Bear Goblins (Part 2)
But as soon as one snatched a piece, it was dragged back by its legs, its spot immediately taken by another goblin.
A dozen or so goblins scrabbled over each other like a rolling wheel. Everyone wanted just one more bite; even the broth had to be licked clean.
Hei Da picked his teeth as he watched the chaos, finding his subordinates’ antics as entertaining as a monkey show. It was his favorite after-dinner spectacle—hilarious and a great accompaniment to a meal. He would also watch for the most ferocious food-snatcher, marking them as a target for exile or a club to the head.
A short while later, the many goblins were lying on the ground. The large pot, licked clean, lay tilted on its side.
They grunted contentedly, stroking their bellies, too lazy to even move.
Hei Da patted his own belly in satisfaction. ’Now, to deal with those four goblins.’
As he got to his feet, a wave of dizziness made him unsteady. He quickly grabbed the cave wall to steady himself. Then, he caught a glimpse of the wall itself slowly melting downward, like flowing water.
At the same time, countless tree roots sprouted from the cave wall, and red flowers bloomed rapidly upon them.
The flowers fluttered their petals a few times before taking flight from the roots, transforming into red and orange butterflies that circled in front of Hei Da.
Hei Da waved a hand to shoo the butterflies away, then shook his head and looked toward the four goblins.
But the goblins were gone. In their place, four green foxes were spinning in circles at the cave entrance.
Hei Da roared in anger, stumbling. He then saw the four foxes hop away, running toward a cluster of rainbow-colored mushrooms.
The mushrooms swelled rapidly, and just as they reached a certain size, they went POP and shrank back down, turning into small, yellowish stones.
These little stones rolled back and forth on the ground, and as they rolled, they stood up. They were actually human Adventurers, less than half a meter tall.
Hei Da grinned, laughing loudly. He could smash these Adventurers into the dirt, one for every swing of his hammer.
But his laughter died in his throat. The four foxes were pushing and pulling a large, black chicken that radiated a rainbow-colored light.
’Wait, that’s not a chicken. It’s a Fearsome Claw Bear!’
The black chicken stood up and transformed into a Fearsome Claw Bear, startling Hei Da into a frantic search for his hammer. But the Fearsome Claw Bear gave him no time, rolling straight for him.
Hei Da roared again and again, sending the Fearsome Claw Bear flying with a single kick. But when it landed, he saw it split into several smaller Fearsome Claw Bears.
He charged into the pile of bears, kicking and smashing, sending the smaller bears flying.
But the small, fearless bears simply rolled right back toward him.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his side. A bear claw had stretched to two meters long and plunged straight into his lower back.
Hei Da bellowed and shattered the claw with a punch, but the broken pieces transformed into tiny, winged Fearsome Claw Bears that flitted about.
They landed on the ground and immediately melted into puddles of black water. From the puddles, long-handled hammers sprouted, swaying before Hei Da like blades of grass.
Hei Da recognized his hammer among them, but these were white, yellow, and every color of the rainbow. He reached out and tugged one, and it deflated like a balloon, shrinking into a line before vanishing completely.
Hei Da kept pulling at them, and the Hammer Grass kept deflating, disappearing, and then reinflating to stand tall again.
Gradually, Hei Da felt one side of his body go numb. He was losing the strength to even lift his arm.
At the same time, waves of dizziness washed over him, and the Hammer Grass in front of him began to blur.
He staggered toward a golden stalk of Hammer Grass, drool trickling unbidden from the corner of his mouth. Then his legs gave out, and he collapsed.
The golden Hammer Grass swayed before him, and Hei Da slowly began to crawl toward it.
The swaying Hammer Grass rapidly inflated, transforming into a green fox.
Hei Da reached out to grab the fox, but it leaped away to dodge him. Then it began to dance right in front of him, wagging its tail.
Hei Da’s arm fell limply to his side. He gasped for breath. His drool had pooled on the ground, forming a shimmering, colorful river.
A few minutes later, he stopped moving.
He was dead.
...
[Name: Hei Da]
[Race: Goblin (Bear Goblin)]
[Danger Level: 7, Dangerous (Injured 4, Slightly Strong)]
[Personality: Arrogant]
[Own State: Blessing of the Evil God (Positive)]
Shire stared at the Bear Goblin’s status panel as it slowly faded, finally exhaling once it had vanished completely.
He had taken his subordinates hunting in the forest early that morning. After a long wait, they had finally managed to catch a wild boar.
After eating their fill beforehand, they used a thick tree branch to carry the boar to the Bear Goblin tribe.
According to what Scarface had told him, their leader was seriously injured. Shire was certain he hadn’t had a decent meal in days.
To Shire, it was simple. ’I might not understand Bear Goblins, but I understand goblins. Without their leader watching, these little green-skins will slack off whenever they get the chance.’
Things had played out just as Shire had predicted. As soon as he’d offered to join them, the Bear Goblin had ordered his underlings to set up the pot and start cooking.
What Shire hadn’t expected was the creature’s cunning. Despite being famished, it still had the presence of mind to make him test the food for poison first.
But even the craftiest fox is no match for a skilled hunter. The Bear Goblin never imagined that Shire had stuffed the Hallucinogenic Mushrooms inside the dead boar’s carcass.
Goblins never discard the innards when they cook their prey.
That was why Shire had only taken a small bite of the meat and was mostly unaffected by the mushrooms.
The Bear Goblin and his minions, on the other hand, had licked the pot clean.
Every time Bai Mao brought back collected Mushrooms, Shire would carefully identify them and test them on a few captured mice.
This had started as a simple self-preservation measure, but after a few days, he discovered the forest was a veritable treasure trove.
Not only did he find several types of mushrooms that could kill a mouse with a single bite, but he also found others that made the mice crash into walls, scurry about chaotically, and roll around on the ground.
After confirming that these particular mushrooms wouldn’t kill the mice, Shire had called over Red Eyes.
Ten minutes later, Red Eyes was shrieking and leaping around several large trees, even ramming into the trunks a few times. Shire, Bai Mao, and Broken Tooth watched the entire performance. The only thing missing was popcorn.
But today, the Bear Goblin’s reaction had been the strongest. He was constantly fighting the air, and in the process, had not only beaten two of his unlucky subordinates to death but had also kicked the pot away.
His underlings, meanwhile, had descended into a chaotic brawl, punching and kicking each other. Even when knocked down, they would manage to take a bite out of a nearby leg.
But they hadn’t eaten much, and they scattered the moment their leader charged at them.
In the end, Shire had used the thick branch they’d used to carry the boar to finish off the Bear Goblin.
The branch was as thick as a human forearm. He had sharpened one end and coated it with venom from a Red Ring Snake.
He hadn’t used a Long Spear to carry the boar precisely because a simple branch wouldn’t arouse suspicion. And just to be safe, he had brought two of them.
The Bear Goblin had snapped the branch after being stabbed, but he had also been poisoned. In the end, the venom had killed him.
Shire knew it had been a huge gamble. The Bear Goblin might have taken the boar but refused his offer to join, simply driving them away. Or he might have just killed Shire and his followers on sight and thrown them all in the pot.
But he knew that everything had risks. You could only do your best to minimize them.
Shire picked up the other thick branch from the ground. Walking over to the Bear Goblin’s corpse, he drove it into its back with a SQUELCH. The body didn’t even twitch. It was clearly dead.
"Starting today, I am your new leader." Shire planted a foot on the Bear Goblin’s back and looked at the listless goblins nearby.
"Green Egg is the new leader."
"Green Egg is the new leader."
Red Eyes and his other followers chimed in from the side.
"You idiots, call me Handsome Guy," Shire corrected.
"No! You’re not the leader! I am!" One of the staggering goblins climbed to its feet, grabbed a wooden club, and charged at Shire.
It shrieked, its eyes filled with contempt and madness. ’What right does a bald shorty have to be leader?’
Shire yanked the branch free and thrust it forward. With a SQUELCH, the goblin was impaled.
Then Shire pulled the branch free, stepped on the goblin’s head, and viciously plunged the sharp end downward, piercing straight through its neck.
The goblin, which had been roaring and howling, let out two gurgles, twitched a few times, and fell still.
"I. Am. The. New. Leader."
Shire gripped the branch, staring at the remaining goblins as he spoke, emphasizing each word.
"Green Egg is the new leader."
"Green Egg is the new leader."
The remaining goblins glanced at each other. One of them, a scrawny one, immediately prostrated itself and crawled before Shire, kneeling to touch his ankle.
With one taking the lead, the rest of the goblins came forward one by one to do the same.
