Chapter 6: Danger (3)

Rosas Kingdom is a kingdom big enough to be counted as a superpower in the eastern part of the continent, Pangea. And in its capital, Narmen, people are greatly flustered and shocked about something.

The six Dukes that acts as the pillars of the country, ten Counts that supervise the borders of the kingdom and other influential people have entered the capital, one after another. The six Dukes gathering is an event enough to make various rumors spread let alone all the prominent figures.

Most rumors are based on situations that happened on the past. Things like going to war with another nation, coronation of a new king or when the senate of the country, Nobles, decided to hold a Grand Meeting to talk about the future of the kingdom. More than the rumors however the people are cowering in fear by the sight of the nobles.

"This is just too absurd! Isn't the Church pushing us too far?!"

"We can't help it. The church does not have military power but its political power can make up for that."

"It is better to just focus on the job and then pull back after some time. It seems that they also asked the other nations to hunt for goblins on their premises."

"Anyways, the provisions are depleting already. I am afraid that we will have to stop after three weeks if we want to eat after this... expedition."

"The army has set out with no preparations, it is fine but we must not let the reserves get caught in this situation especially with the winter around the corner."

"I am concerned about the citizens as well, our appearance at the capital have stirred them up. They only know that the army has set out to clear monsters. At this rate if the 'prediction' became known to the people, they will panic and we may face problems on our own territory and of course, the capital as well."

Numerous voices can be heard in this conference hall where tall pillars can be seen in the corner of the room and a round table at the center. The walls with its design and the ceiling with its expensive chandelier add a grandeur atmosphere to the room.

The people in this room are the nobles in the kingdom who have gathered to discuss how to solve the current situation. Some people are happy and excited about the expedition but many are dissatisfied about it.

It is only natural. They can only be displeased for the expedition's purpose, which was instigated by the church, is something ridiculous and impossible.

The purpose or rather the content of the message given to them by the church was... "Eliminate all goblins!"

That in itself is too vague and too broad for the people with power to act upon. That is the reason why the nobles are unsure about how to deal with this.

****

A week has passed since my fight with the wolf. During that time, I hunted beasts and monsters and engaged in difficult fights and as a result, I got more used to my body and I became stronger as well. It seems that evolutions are not the only way for monsters to get stronger. I also found a lake by the south of the cave.

And now, fully convinced that I can at least pose some threat to the magical beast, I started to search for tracks of the wolf. I haven't gained things like a sword but I got a sharp horn of a reindeer. I'm not sure if it is strong enough but it seems like the reindeer was an evolved one so I think that it'll work out, somehow.

I decided to search the area where I met the cub and the place where I saw the tracks of the wolf. When I got there, the marks and the paw of a beast was still engraved on the land. I don't know if he is the only magical beast here but considering that I haven't encountered any strong guys like him, he is probably the only one.

I follow the trails while being hidden. I don't want to get the attention of the wolf and I want to ensure my victory as best as possible. When I walked for some minutes however I got interrupted by an orc moving around. I got surprised at this because... an orc appearing in the wolf's territory?! Isn't that suicide?

---What's going on? Is he not here? This makes it hard.

If an orc who is clearly not a wolf roams around, that means that the wolf is no longer staying here making me lose all clues about where to find it. I click my tongue in frustration and decided to take out my anger in the orc. He was killed within a few minutes and I ate his flesh as I contemplate about what to do now.

---If I can't do something about the wolf, I cannot wipe the shame!

The moment I realized this, my chest tightened and it became hard to breathe. My pride cannot take this sense of weakness, about being unable to do something that forced me to bleed. It almost feels like my entire being is made of pride. Something is constantly screaming at me to make sure that I take revenge and kill that wolf with my own hands. Personally, it feels bad to be ruled by such instincts but I guess I just don't know enough about myself. It makes me really consider searching for other goblins.

"Tsk"

Knowing that I cannot let this go on, I stand up and walked in the direction of where I fought the wolf. Some trails should have been left there as the fight was quite flashy and the surroundings got messed up as well.

As I walked through the forest, I noticed that there is no monster roaming around here. No orc, wolf, beasts, or whatsoever. I wonder why?

Incidentally, the only monsters and beasts that I encountered here are the wolf, lizardman, orc, reindeer and a four armed monkey. The monkey was dangerous too but it couldn't beat me when it came to the quality of the punch.

When I arrived at the scene, my face, which was filled with my displeasure and disgust upon learning that the wolf wasn't at his territory, now shows an expression of exhilaration. Joy was evident on my face and my heart beat faster. My mouth twists as it forms into a grin. Why, you say? Because...

---The wolf is here!