Forests Don't Support Idle Goblins

"Those two species must be fighting now," Charles said to the queen ant with a smile. "That will relieve some of the pressure on you."

"Thank you, goblin." The queen ant's tentacles brushed against Ciel's cheek, her voice carrying a hint of joy.

"After the giant spider and the giant bee have tasted each other, they might add each other to their menus," Charles said, reaching out to touch the queen ant's antennae.

"You're quite interesting." The queen ant shook her head, looking at the busy worker ants around her. "My strength has recovered a little."

"Those honeys are alright, aren't they?" Charles said with a smile. The honeys were partly carried in the team's backpack as rations, and partly intended to be used as bait to catch ants.

"Very good, better and sweeter than the flowers the goblins used to trade before," the queen ant said, clearly the honey had a good effect on her.

"I have plenty of this honey, I can offer it to you," Charles said, then took out a small piece of honey from his backpack and handed it to the queen ant.

"What do you need, goblin?" the queen ant asked, looking at the honey in the goblin's hand. "Right now, all I can offer is soft white goblin. We don't know when our race will perish, and we don't know how long this exchange with you can last."

"Don't worry, this is just the first step, training their eating habits. I'll have other steps later, and I'll try to open a canteen for them." Xia Er handed the honey to the worker ant beside him. "I believe that in the future, those two creatures will pose a much smaller threat to you, and I will find a way to completely eliminate them."

"So you don't need to be so sad. Rest well and prepare to give birth to the next queen of your colony," he said, watching the worker ants feed the queen honey. "As for my needs, they are very simple. I don't need a soft, white ant. I just want to sign a contract with you so that I can employ your children to do things for my colony on a long-term basis."

"Work for your people?" the queen ant repeated Shar's request, which was probably the first time she had ever heard of such an exchange in her life.

"Yes, help us transport goods and dig burrows. If possible, I'm also prepared to hire some soldier ants." Charles smiled and spread his hands. "You know we goblins are smaller and not as strong as your children, so I hope we can cooperate. I will provide you with plenty of honey so your children can grow up strong."

The queen ant paused for a long time, seemingly deep in thought. Finally, she placed her antennae on Shar's forehead. "Alright, although I can't understand what you're saying for now, you don't seem evil. I agree to make an exchange with your colony. I will issue commands to my people. You can communicate with them. Please treat my children well; perhaps they are the last members of my colony."

"No problem, I will treat them well, and their first task is to continue your lineage and live well. We will hear from them soon." Charles held the tentacle that touched his forehead, completing this "ritual".

He did not tell the other party that he saw on the territory map that the entire eastern region had been brought under his control, and that green vines symbolizing the blessing of the god of earth and life were wrapped around the edge of the territory map.

"That means the ant colony will also benefit to some extent, since the trees in this area will grow stronger." Xia Er scanned the entire map, and the many herb gathering points on the map annoyed him. "We still need to completely eliminate these two types of predators. Ants know to only gather from one side of the tree and not to deplete the resources, but these predators don't care about anything. Moreover, there is a watchtower basement to the east. We can only feel at ease controlling the entire area after we have killed all these big guys."

"If possible, I'd like to hire some worker ants right now," Charles said immediately after finishing his inspection.

"Yes, goblin, I will pass on the order immediately." The queen ant shook her antennae and then touched the worker ants around her. Then, Shire saw the worker ants touch their antennae one by one like a game of musical chairs, spreading the new order.

In the forest, the once lush and dense woodland was now filled with dust, and trees were shaking from collisions.

The buzzing of wings mixed with the screeching of hisses disturbed the peace of the entire area.

The giant spider's thick, black pincers snapped down, completely ignoring the stinger of the cave wasp piercing its abdomen. At that moment, it was pinning the annoying giant wasp down and frantically tearing at the wasp's abdomen.

Two predators clashed in the middle of the forest like black tides colliding. Giant bees swooped down from the sky, while the burrowing spiders raised their bodies, holding their first pair of forelegs high, waiting for the giant bees to strike.

The battle between the two sides had been going on for a long time. As they approached the entrance to their own cave, they kept dragging dead enemies into the cave. They seemed to have become familiar with each other's scent.

In the center of the "battlefield," many spiders or cave wasps were already twitching and curling up, turning into black corpses, but the "meat grinder" was still working frantically.

Several worker ants were digging diligently a dozen meters below the battlefield. After digging out the soil, they would spray the tunnel walls with a special formic acid made from their bodies. This formic acid was not very lethal, but it could mix with the soil and form a hard shell after drying, thus ensuring the tunnel's stability.

At the same time, they dug this tunnel to be exceptionally spacious, allowing three worker ants to pass side by side, which is much wider than the tunnels in the ant kingdom.

Charles stood behind the worker ants, holding a torch and watching them work. This route led directly to the giant spider's burrow, and on the other side, they were also digging, with the goal of reaching the burrow bee's nest.

Both passages lead to each other's hatching area, while their starting point is that enormous underground stone chamber that once housed a huge goblin clan.

"I hope you like the cafeteria I chose," Charles said calmly. "I even made the corridors spacious enough for your convenience. I just hope you won't let my good intentions go to waste and will eat as much as you like, five meals a day."

However, Charles knew in his heart that although he had deliberately made the passage wide open so that the two races could not block it so easily, it would not be so easy to completely get rid of these ferocious predators.

"Take it slow. Once my colony grows stronger, I should be able to kill them all." Charles chuckled, approaching the cave wall and directing a worker ant carrying soil over.

…………

"Boss, this area needs some leather padding." Little John walked over, holding a specially made saddle.

These worker ants have a unique structure that makes them unsuitable for ordinary saddles. Their arched backs are made of hard chitin, and their large, soft abdomens require special saddle designs.

"Okay." Charles nodded, holding several draft drawings of cargo boxes in his hand, comparing them to the backs of worker ants.

Through experiments, he learned that the ordinary load capacity of these worker ants far exceeded the maximum load capacity of a mule, and they could also pull heavier objects. However, in the forest terrain, he could only make a cargo box and fix it on the back of the worker ant.

Thanks to the giant worker ants' six thick thigh segments, they can move steadily and quickly across the rugged terrain of the forest, something mules or horses cannot do. *The Forest Doesn't Keep Idle Goblins* - Stunning writing, a plot full of twists and turns!

However, these gigantic ants did not lift objects hundreds of times their own weight as he had imagined, but this carrying capacity already made Charles very happy.

"We can also equip it with several types of saddles," Little John said after looking at the sky for a moment. "We can add mounts so that we can carry several goblins at once when we travel."

"How was it? How did you feel just now?" Charles asked with a smile.

"It's so novel! It's the first time I've ever ridden a horse in the forest," Little John laughed happily. "And it wasn't even that bumpy."

"These are just a few worker ants, and the 'ant saddle' is still being improved," Charles said, looking at the worker ants shaking their heads. "There will be larger soldier ants later, and those will be the ones that can fight."

He had previously discovered that the soldier ants did not have any acid or venom; they only attacked enemies with their mandibles. He needed to design some combat tools and tactics based on the characteristics of these soldier ants.

"Now that you mention it, I'm actually quite interested in trying out the cavalry ants," Little John said, a hint of longing in his eyes.

"Thank you for your help this time in Torch City," Charles said.

"It's nothing, boss." Little John looked at the other person, they smiled at each other, and neither of them said a word.

"Take a break, there are other things to do later." Charles brought up Little John's control panel.

Name: John Franklin Jr.

Race: Human

[Danger Level: 6, Slightly Strong]

Personality: Cautious

[Title: Future Hero]

[Ability: Bewildering Eyes]

"It's been upgraded, huh?" Charles thought to himself. Then he said to Little John, "Cao Cao hasn't seen you for several days. He wants to play with you."

"No way, I'd much rather have the cavalry ant," Little John quickly waved his hand.

"We'll have to wait a bit longer for the soldier ants." Charles shook his head slightly. "I'd also love to try riding a soldier ant in a charge."

"Then we'll equip the soldier ants with specially designed saddles and 'horse armor'." He looked at the goblins shouting around the worker ants in the distance. Those soldier ants also had a certain load-bearing capacity, unlike the warhorses carrying heavy cavalry, which could only charge a short distance on the battlefield. These soldier ants could charge continuously for a long time.

How about a heavy cavalry force of 5000 soldier ants?

However, that's still a long way off. They don't have mounts or armor yet, and Sharl knows that goblins need a long period of training before they can become cavalrymen.

This successful contract with the queen ant gave him more ideas, and many uses for ants were born in his mind. However, all of these applications had one prerequisite: the stability and security of the ant colony.

"We need to find a way to get rid of those two troublesome creatures as soon as possible." Charles looked at his subordinates trying to climb onto the backs of the worker ants in the distance. "I believe that with these big guys, the productivity of the entire colony will increase again."

"The ethnic group is developing better and better."

…………

"Goblin?" Philip said, covering his mouth and nose with a handkerchief and frowning.

"Yes." Ricardo sat cross-legged on a pile of weeds, looking up at the Valentine family heirs outside the iron bars.

"You're supposed to be professional butchers who specialize in killing those green-skinned dwarfs, and you actually got gored to death by a pig?" Philip scoffed, a hint of contempt in his eyes.

"They are powerful, we are no match for them." Ricardo didn't argue. He had already told the captain of the guard, Jules, what he needed to say. He didn't have the time to serve this stingy young master.

"What a bunch of useless trash." Philip curled his lip, showing great disdain for the Brotherhood of Storms. "We've wasted so much time raising you."

"Whether we're good for nothing or not, you can see for yourself," Ricardo said, picking his ear with his little finger. "Besides, you haven't really taken care of us much either."

Philip's lips twitched, then he struggled to suppress his anger. "I'm asking you, have you found the little vixen?"

"I found it, I definitely saw it." Ricardo thought for a moment, then nodded again. "I've given you the map, can you let me go now?"

"Don't worry, you'll be released tomorrow." Philip flicked the dungeon bars with his finger. "It's just sending you to the execution ground; we need you to set an example."

Ricardo glared at the other man, his body trembling with rage. "You broke your promise! You said you'd let me go if I confessed everything!"

"Yes, I'm letting you go." Philip smiled sinisterly as he left the dungeon.

After a while, Ricardo glanced at the sleeping guards outside the dungeon, then went to the railing and waited quietly. Soon, a red squirrel came running over with a bunch of keys in its mouth.

He crouched down, picked up the bunch of keys, and gently rubbed the squirrel's head. "Trying to lock up an animal trainer? You guys are really stupid."

Meanwhile, inside the castle, Philip looked at a merchant with a slightly arrogant expression. "Is your ship setting sail for Torch City tomorrow?"

"Yes, sir," said an elderly archipelago merchant with bronze skin, bowing slightly with one hand on his chest.

"I need to borrow your ship to transport a shipment to Torch City. Would you be willing?" Philip leaned back on the sofa. He crossed his legs.

"No problem, I will follow your orders," the merchant replied respectfully.

"Very good, you're quite good." Philip nodded, picked up the coffee in front of him, and said, "What are you selling? Don't tell me it's pickled fish."

"Uh, it's a healing potion."

"Healing potion?" Philip raised an eyebrow, then turned to Jules, who was standing beside him, and asked, "Are we running low on supplies?"

"We gave the Brotherhood of Storms some last time, which was indeed too little," Jules said after thinking for a moment and nodding.

"There are also people who traffic in this stuff. If your healing potions are made in a legitimate alchemy workshop, I can buy them all." Philip took a sip of coffee, then looked up at the merchant in front of him. "However, I will only buy them at 90% of the market price."

The merchant thought for a moment and said, "Yes, but could we trade ore?"

"Okay, you and Jules will go and complete the formalities in a moment." After saying that, Philippe ignored the businessman and had Jules escort him out of the reception room.

"This time, you will take three guards with you and personally escort those gold coins to Torch City." Philip looked up at the captain of the guards who was gently closing the door. "Those gold coins cannot be lost."

"Are you really going to the forest yourself?" Jules asked, sounding somewhat anxious.

"Yes, I'll go myself this time."