Chapter 40 - Goblins and the Demon King
Author’s Note: There's going to be a battle scene with goblins. Those who are not comfortable with it should be warned.
The young man with black hair and golden eyes had a deeply stern expression as he gazed at the forest at dusk.
To the east of the capital, goblins had appeared on the highway. They had been informed by a merchant caravan, and they had ridden their horses to this spot.
It was a routine job, and the goblins, a type of monster, had been hunted down dozens of times before.
They needed to confirm their numbers and the situation, fight them, handle the aftermath, and return to the royal castle. It was all quite straightforward.
Yet, despite the simplicity of the task, today was supposed to be his day off.
He had planned to buy lunch, sweets, and alcohol, and take new wine glasses to the Green Tower, where he had intended to experiment with enchanting a dagger with Dahlia.
For the past four days, he had eagerly anticipated the possibility of creating a man-made magic sword.
The past three days had been filled with excitement, and he had found himself smiling while training.
But now, goblins had appeared half a day's ride away. The round trip alone would take a day.
He immediately wrote a letter of apology and informed Dahlia he would contact her upon his return, then sent a messenger to the Green Tower.
While traveling on horseback, everything had been as usual, but upon reaching the site, his mood sharply plummeted.
They spotted goblins sporadically along the highway, and following their trail, they soon came across a small, fledgling village in the middle of the forest.
It was likely that an overpopulation of goblins had led them to attempt establishing a new settlement. It was right by the highway, and the only viable solution was complete eradication.
The plan had been to spend one day confirming the situation, another day fighting, a third for cleanup, and half a day for the return trip. It was going to take far too long.
Though he had encountered similar situations before, today he was particularly frustrated.
"That position doesn’t allow for fire. The wind isn’t great either."
The members of the Monster Subjugation Force and accompanying mages frowned as they gazed deeper into the forest. Each of their faces was tinged with the crimson hue of the setting sun.
"I’d like to use water to flush them out quickly, but we can’t wash away the entire village with that."
A blue-haired man holding a spear said with a faint sigh.
Grizelda Lanza, the vice-captain of the Monster Subjugation Force, was leading this operation in the absence of the captain, Grato, who remained at the capital.
He was tall like Volf, but his build was more solid. His face, however, was calm, with an appearance that could easily be mistaken for that of a civil officer.
The surroundings were forested, and deeper within lay a goblin settlement that had yet to be cleared. Several small, rudimentary structures made of interwoven trees stood in rows, resembling makeshift homes.
If they used fire magic to burn it down, the flames would spread to the surrounding area. Wind magic would be obstructed by the trees. Water magic couldn’t simply wash the village away either.
The standard method was to surround the village and then carry out an eradication operation.
“Vice-Captain Grizelda, may I suggest something?”
A man who rarely spoke up approached, causing Grizelda to widen his blue eyes slightly.
"What is it, Volfred?"
"Once the goblins return to their nest, we can make a loud noise to lure them out. After that, if someone leads the charge through the settlement, they should be able to draw out the goblins capable of fighting first. We can launch a coordinated attack at that point and then encircle and wipe out the rest. What do you think of this plan?"
"That would certainly shorten the operation, but the village is small and the terrain is bad. Wouldn't leading the charge be dangerous?"
"There’s no problem."
He met his gaze directly, but there wasn’t the slightest flicker of doubt in those golden eyes. The man seemed to possess absolute confidence.
"It's rare for you to make a proposal, Volfred."
"No, I just want to finish it quickly."
Volf glanced briefly in the direction of the royal capital and spoke. The knight nodded emphatically.
"Yeah, you're right. It's starting to get cloudy."
Above them, the clouds were growing darker.
If it rained at night, setting up camp would be troublesome, and the footing would be difficult tomorrow.
Humans were heavier than goblins. They didn’t want to risk getting stuck in the mud and being attacked by goblins.
It seemed that the black-haired man had considered this when making his suggestion.
"It’s a good plan, but who’s going to lead the charge?"
"Well, since it was my idea, so I’ll go."
Volfred said, his face devoid of any tension.
Grizelda nodded, accepting the plan, and instructed him to relay it to the other Scarlet Armor members.
As the man quickly walked away, a more seasoned team member squinted his eyes.
"Volfred’s starting to propose strategies now. He’s really grown."
"Yes, it’s a pleasant development. Eventually, I would like him to move from being in Scarlet Armor to leading the unit."
Grizelda deeply agreed with the member's words.
When Volfred had been new, he had been labeled a "death-seeker," and even after some experience, he was still seen as "reckless." His inability to use any magic other than physical enhancement had led to poor evaluations of him.
What overturned that perception over time and with effort was none other than his unwavering dedication.
Now, he was no longer focused solely on defeating monsters; he had begun observing the entire squad from a broader perspective.
Grizelda thought to himself that he wanted to properly acknowledge his growth.
However, Volfred’s mind was filled only with the thought, “I just want to get back home quickly.”
After their discussion, they decided to launch a surprise attack just before sunset.
・・・・・・・
As the sun began to set, the young man was diligently stretching.
He carefully stretched his neck, shoulders, elbows, and legs from top to bottom. Without doing so, moving under body enhancement often resulted in strained muscles.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed some of the squad members speaking in hushed tones.
"Strangely, Volf’s been smiling a lot lately. He must have been overflowing with energy."
"He’d been forced to take leave after that Wyvern incident. Today, he’s probably letting off steam with this 'monster-slaying.'"
"At least for today, I’ll feel sorry for the monsters."
Having finished stretching, Volf drew his longsword and placed the scabbard on the ground.
Leaving behind the scabbard was not a praiseworthy act for a knight, but he found it cumbersome when running and had deliberately adopted the habit after his scabbard was broken by a monster during his first battle.
His sword was an issued longsword, but the blade had been darkened black. Even when drawn, it wouldn’t reflect the setting sun.
He took a deep breath and assumed his position, waiting for the sun to set.
The Scarlet Armor group this time consisted of three people, with Volf in the lead.
Beneath the sky, still tinged with a faint red hue, the sound of multiple gongs echoed loudly.
The once-quiet settlement was suddenly engulfed in noise. As the green goblins swarmed out in droves, a brief command rang through the air.
One of the Scarlet Armor knights charged ahead, followed by two others, a beat behind.
The man at the front ran with an unnatural speed, almost like a demon.
A goblin appeared in front of him, and it was cut down in one swift motion.
Another goblin appeared on his right, and it was struck down with a slash.
Yet another goblin appeared to his left, and it was swiftly cut down as well.
It was as though he was slicing through paper; the black sword moved with a smooth swish.
A moment later, blood splattered, but by then, the man had already advanced.
The two knights who had followed a beat behind were still far behind.
Unbothered by the uneven footing, one individual moved with astonishing speed.
The goblins that tried to leap at him were cleaved in two mid-air and fell to the ground. The smaller figures that followed in swarms now seemed almost pitiable.
"You can’t even tell who the monster is anymore..."
"Seeking a new land, the tribe was filled with hope, but then they were hunted by the Demon King Volf, huh?”
"Stop it. You’re getting too into it."
Despite their casual conversation, the soldiers unsheathed their swords and checked the tightness of their elbow guards.
There was no tension.
It was just another monster hunt, just another set of movements. Even if death was close by, they had to maintain their composure, or they’d be the ones to fall next.
Ahead of them, they watched the man run. Suddenly, a small red goblin appeared in front of him.
It wore a long robe and held a magical staff in one hand.
"Volf, be careful! It’s a mage!"
Someone shouted, but whether the words reached him or not, it was unclear.
The goblin mage had likely finished its incantation by the time it was noticed.
Countless fiery arrows rained down on Volf.
However, amidst the red rain, the man didn't slow down; instead, he accelerated.
He ran straight through the rain of fire, his black shadow cutting across the air, and in a single motion, he severed the goblin mage’s neck.
The path of carnage cleared, and the man finally stopped.
He swung his sword with force to shake off the blood, just beside the rolling head of the goblin mage.
A green streak splashed onto the ground, marking the signal.
"Charge!"
The vice-captain’s shout spurred the other soldiers to rush forward.
It took only a brief time until the extermination was complete.
・・・・・・・
After the battle ended, the air around them relaxed. The knights were talking and moving around.
"I’ll help out. Let’s get this over with quickly."
"Volf, you must be tired from leading the charge. Take a rest for a bit."
"Don’t push yourself, Volfred."
"I’m fine. I just want to get this done quickly."
Without even wiping the sweat from his brow, Volf joined in the task of hauling the goblin corpses. His comrades had tried to stop him, but he just couldn’t stay still.
The goblins’ bodies were gathered, and those who could use earth magic dug a hole while those who could use fire magic burned the bodies before burying them. Once done, a little red wine was poured over them, and each soldier said a prayer.
The monsters, too, were living creatures. However, when coexistence was impossible, fighting was unavoidable.
Once the hunt was over, it was a tradition of the Monster Subjugation Force to pray in order to mark the conclusion.
"Well then, the food’s only our field rations, but there’s extra wine! Anyone who wants more, come and get some!"
To avoid traveling at night, they set up camp at a slightly distant location. Since the mission had ended earlier than expected, it seemed they had quite a bit of extra wine left over from the preparations.
"I’ll go get some. Volf, you want white?"
"No, sorry. I’d prefer red today."
"Red, huh? That’s unusual for you. Ah, I bet people will say the Demon King is still thirsty for blood..."
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"Never mind, it's nothing. I'll go get the red one."
"Alright, I'll spread out the rations then."
With a smile, Volf talked with his comrades and stretched widely in front of the campfire.
It seemed that he would make it back to the capital by tomorrow without issue.
After the expedition, there would be at least two days off. During that time, if I could visit the Green Tower... he had already begun to consider it.
At another campfire, Grizelda and the more experienced soldiers were drinking wine together.
"It ended without a hitch. To think that he could move that fast on such rough terrain... I really feel like I’ve been outpaced."
"He’s grown, too. To think that Volf would not only think about the mission but even consider ways to shorten the time... He’s truly becoming a man whose future you can’t wait to see."
Their voices were like that of parents discussing their child’s growth, and the vice-captain nodded deeply.
"Yes. Volfred’s future is something to truly look forward to."
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