"But, Young Master," Yu Le hesitated before continuing, "the Storm Brotherhood... they all died there."
"Just a bunch of trash," Philip said with the same contempt. "Those men can’t even compare to you guards. I heard that among them, only Matel had ever taken Secret Medicine."
"That may be so, but the enemy is also very clever." Yu Le thought for a moment, then picked up the coffee pot and refilled the other man’s cup.
"A bunch of goblins who got lucky, or maybe there’s an Evil Mage backing them," Philip said, leaning back on the sofa with a casual tone. "This time, I’ll have the guards wear Light Full-Body Armor and use Magic Defense. I refuse to believe those goblins can win just by biting me."
"But..." Yu Le tried to persuade him further, but Philip just waved his hand dismissively.
"Yu Le, do you know what’s in that Relic?" Philip said slowly, his eyes on the map on the wall. "Little goblins. Ricardo didn’t lie to me. When I saw him in the dungeon before, I brought a member of the Church with me. He was the one who told me there was no falsehood in the man’s words."
"Proof of the Heart?" Yu Le said, surprised. He knew that members of the God Church of Light and Justice possessed a type of Magic that would trigger a reaction if someone was lying.
"So, even if there are no Gold Coin Beast Cores there, there is a whole clan of little goblins. That’s enough for us to establish connections in Plantagenet City." Philip smiled smugly, as if he could already see himself as a guest of honor among the nobles.
"Besides, Father also supports me going in person. He wants me to get more exposure to combat and military formations." He rose and walked toward the map of the Fran Kingdom. "Perhaps I’ll need to command soldiers as soon as next year."
"In that case, please ensure your safety." After a moment’s thought, Yu Le could only nod. He knew that if anything happened to Philip, he would surely be reprimanded by the Count, and his own future would be over.
"Don’t worry. They’re just a bunch of goblins. No matter how strong they are, they’re still goblins, stupid as pigs. I’m confident the Guard Corps’ Abilities can handle them." Philip turned and smiled at Yu Le. "You, on the other hand, must be careful on your trip to Torch City. I hear it’s chaotic there right now. Nothing can go wrong with our shipment."
"Understood. I’ll get in touch with the officials there and the Third Prince." Yu Le thumped his chest and straightened his back. "I will ensure nothing happens to the cargo."
"Also, tell them that I will soon be taking those little goblins to the Royal Capital of Plantagenet to have a personal audience with His Highness the Prince," Philip walked up to Yu Le and said seriously.
"Understood." Yu Le gave a slight bow.
"Alright, you may go. Finish your business with that merchant, and remember to patrol the ship thoroughly." Philip turned and gave a casual wave of his hand.
After hearing the soft click of the door closing behind him, he picked up his coffee cup and, with his hands behind his back, walked into the inner room of the parlor. ’Goblins... how interesting. I wonder what kind of goblins they could be?’
’I wonder if I can capture their leader, put an iron collar around his neck, and train him to pour my coffee.’
Mumbling to himself, he walked over to the metal bird perch and looked smugly at the little goblin hugging her knees. "I’m leaving for the Nightmare Forest tomorrow."
Hearing this, the little goblin, Yun Xiya, showed a slight reaction. She shifted her gaze slightly, looking out the window.
"This time, I’m going to capture a clan of little goblins," Philip said softly, as if he were merely saying he was going to the living room for a cup of coffee. "I think it might be your clan."
Yun Xiya didn’t look at him, but her body was clearly trembling.
"I bet you never imagined that I’d be taking you with me this time," Philip said with a smile. "You’ve been wanting to go for a long time, haven’t you?"
He paid her no mind and continued, as if to himself, "I’ll take you there and have you personally persuade them to compromise. If you can’t convince them, I’ll torture you in front of them until they surrender."
"In your dreams!" Yun Xiya shouted.
"I hear little goblins are a Race that cherishes family very much," Philip said with a smile.
"Demon... you’re a Demon!" Tears streamed from Yun Xiya’s eyes. She didn’t want her family to see her being tortured.
Philip scoffed. "I’m a human, not a Demon."
...
"This guy isn’t human anymore. He’s probably on his way to becoming a Demon."
Sofia stood before the underground stone chamber, her brow furrowed. "Such a dense, evil aura... and one displeasing to the Life Main God. Vissans, what in the world did you do?"
She had just entered the stone chamber and walked a full circle, seeing the laboratory inside. However, she had searched everywhere and couldn’t find a single thing with writing on it. Meanwhile, the large outer chamber showed signs of being burned by fire.
’Has he already been killed?’ Sofia glanced around. Nothing grew in this circular area, not even a single blade of grass. There was, however, a layer of black ash on the ground, a clear sign that something had been burned.
"I suppose I’ll just have to ask the local residents." She walked toward the distant forest and stood quietly under a tree. Before long, a few small birds landed on her shoulder.
"CHIRP CHIRP," the birds sang continuously, but Sofia kept her eyes closed, completely still.
Nearly ten minutes passed before her eyes snapped open. She frowned slightly, then broke into a grin, revealing two small, sharp canines.
"Sorry, I just fell asleep."
"CHIRP CHIRP!" the birds chirped even more energetically.
"Alright, alright, I’m sorry! Stop scolding me." Sofia could only raise her hands slightly. "Can you tell me what happened before?"
"Mhm, mhm, giant Mushroom Tree," she nodded, repeating what she heard from the birds’ chirps. "Unmoving goblins... mhm, another group of goblins came... mhm, mhm, the Mushroom Tree burned."
"And in the end, the goblins left together."
After a moment of quiet contemplation, Sofia reached into her pocket and took out some grains of rice. "A gift for you."
The little birds flew onto her hand and pecked the rice grains clean.
Watching the birds fly away, Sofia frowned again. ’Goblins took care of Vissans? How is that possible?’
’What kind of goblins could possibly defeat a renegade Druid? Even I would have some difficulty dealing with him.’
She had to reconsider the information the birds had just given her. ’So, there was one group of goblins, and then a second group came, killed Vissans, set the mutated tree on fire, and then absorbed the first group.’
’No, these goblins are too strong. I need to keep an eye on them. I’ll go look for them.’ She finally made up her mind. ’First, I’ll find them, and then I’ll go back and report to the Lord Bishop.’
’The written materials might be in their hands. If not, I can always search their life memories to see what happened.’
’Goblins this powerful... I need to inform the Adventurer Association and tell those Adventurers to be extremely careful.’
’And...’ Sofia looked at the surrounding canopy, then held out a hand, feeling the forest. ’I can definitely feel the Main God’s presence here. Could it be that a Main God has truly blessed this area?’
’I’ve never heard of the Four Gods bestowing their blessings upon the Nightmare Forest. Could there really be a Main God’s Divine Hall here? Then where are the believers? The goblins?’
She covered her mouth and yawned. ’I should probably head back to Yangjiao Town for a nap first. I’ll come out and look again tonight.’
’I’ve heard those Adventurers say a group of goblins has appeared in the forest, and there’s a powerful Ghost among them. I wonder if they’re the ones responsible.’
’I’ll go look. It’s easier to find a Ghost at night anyway.’
Before long, a large, chubby owl flew south.
...
"You made this?" Shire looked at the two Stone Rings on the ground, then glanced at the Ghost Witch, Agatha, standing opposite him.
"Yes." Agatha was holding a notebook, comparing its contents to the Stone Rings on the ground.
"Have you tested it?" Shire crouched down and knocked on the white stone.
"I have. A cage with a monkey in it," Agatha said, holding her notebook and clasping her hands behind her back. "It was transported from here to the Fortress gate. The monkey was very agitated, but otherwise, nothing happened."
"Agitated?" Shire looked up at the Ghost Witch across from him.
"Probably thought it was about to evolve into a human," Agatha shrugged.
"Any other changes?" Shire walked into the middle of the Stone Ring and stomped on the ground.
"None. Or rather, none that I could find," Agatha said affirmatively after a few seconds of thought.
"Do you want to try it now?" she asked, looking at Shire.
"Huh? Uh..." Shire immediately stepped out of the Stone Ring. His [Heart of the Brave] was still recovering; he didn’t dare to try it.
"Let me do it. After all, I made it with my own hands." Agatha took the initiative and stepped into the center of the Stone Ring. "You operate the controller."
"No, no, it’s still dangerous. If something were to go wrong, it would be irreversible," Shire said, waving his hands frantically.
"No, let me try," Agatha said, looking at Shire with a serious tone. "On one hand, I want to see the results of my research on Ancient Runes. On the other, I want to be able to help you."
"Help me?" Shire was taken aback.
"Yes. You’ve allowed me to learn such interesting ancient secrets, and you’ve promised to explore all the Relics in the forest. I have to do something for you in return," Agatha said with a small smile. "Frankly, if you hadn’t saved me in that little cabin, perhaps I would have already..."
"No, you’ve already helped me a lot. For example, Rubus," Shire said, holding up a hand. Then he suddenly remembered the Star Realm Dog’s special trait. "We don’t need you to go. We can use Rubus. If there’s a problem, he’ll just jump back."
"That... is a viable solution." Agatha thought for a moment and nodded.
Before long, a pale blue Star Realm Dog stood in the middle of the Stone Ring.
"Activate it," Shire said. A flash of white light appeared before him, and Rubus vanished.
"Come on, let’s hurry to the Fortress gate and see!" he called to Agatha excitedly, and the two of them ran toward the Fortress gate.
At the gate, sunlight filtered through the gaps in the canopy, dappling the inside of the Stone Ring. Shire and Agatha stared at the ring, their mouths agape in disbelief.
Inside the Stone Ring were two Star Realm Dogs. One, a blue one, was standing, while a red one lay beside it.