Forests Don't Support Idle Goblins

"Is that cargo ship still sailing?" Charles looked at the map in his hand and turned to ask Pazzani beside him.

Prince Pazani of Naga, or rather, soon to be King of Naga, nodded. However, the movement aggravated the wound on his chest. There was a diagonal scar on his chest that ran from top to bottom to his abdomen. The scar was red and had obviously just healed. It stood out more against his dark blue scales.

“My people are watching them from the Dallen River.” Pazzani leaned closer to examine the map in Charles’s hand. “Brother, are they really here?”

"I think so," Charles said calmly. "I think you may not know the reputation of the Holy Crusade of the Church of War, but I do know a little about it. These guys are a bunch of battle maniacs. It is said that they have all sworn a blood oath to the God of War and Glory. Their combat power is in no way inferior to those high-ranking knight orders, and even surpasses them by a lot. Moreover, these guys can also use holy magic, and they don't just rely on brute force to fight."

"With their combat strength, they can only hunt large magical beasts in the forest, and they can easily deal with even high-level magical beasts," Sharl looked up at Pazzani. "Right now, the only ones who can be their targets are the Feathered Serpent God, and of course, your Naga race as well."

"Us?" Pazzani was taken aback. "They can actually dive into Lake Dallen?"

"It's hard to say, I don't know much about holy magic." Charles smiled. "But I'm glad you could help, it proves that the alliance agreement we signed earlier is still valid."

"Helping you is helping us too," Pazzani said with a touch of emotion, gently touching the scar on his chest. "If you are all killed, then the next step will probably be to kill us. That's what happened with the Feathered Serpent God, and it's the same now with the Crusaders."

"Our race has been hunted by humans for thousands of years. The elders are well aware of their insidious tricks. If they cannot subdue us, they will make requests for trade or learning. But once they gather strength and have the military power to defeat us, they will directly capture and kill us."

"You seem to know quite a lot." Charles shook his head slightly. "Humans can indeed be very greedy at times."

“No, I should say all races are greedy,” Pazzani sighed. “The elders say that the race records that humans are not a race suitable for learning magic. It is difficult for any of them to have magical talent and be able to coordinate with the magic field. But my ancestors were greedy. They were not satisfied with living in the ocean and wanted to conquer the land. Unfortunately, at that time, humans also wanted to change their bodies through the Naga’s magic potions in order to gain the opportunity to learn magic.”

"Is that so?" Charles raised an eyebrow; this was the first time he'd heard such a claim. "And then?"

"Later," Pazzani smiled bitterly, "it's just like you said, excellent hunters often appear in the form of prey. When our ancestors swaggered onto the land, they quickly fell into human traps. By the time they realized what was happening, many had already been captured or died, and what killed them was the magic that humans had just learned."

"Many times after that, humans, elves, and dwarves kept hunting down the Naga, so we had to keep moving around," Pazani shrugged. "You know what happened next."

"No wonder that many young humans are occasionally born with magical talents. It turns out that they have undergone bloodline modification over thousands of years." Charles smiled. A few years ago, anything could happen, but those modified individuals had some influence on the next generation. Through various forms of "communication," they developed into what they are today.

Like Vivian, who possesses astonishing magical talent, while Charles knows that no magician has ever appeared in his family for generations.

This is like the evolution of genes, a game between dominant and recessive factors.

"By the way, when will you become king?" Charles smiled, rolled up the map in his hand, and changed the subject.

"I don't know, I guess I won't have time," Pazzani sighed. "I was thinking that I could rest for a few more days after completing the trial, but the elders were very happy when they found out that I had unexpectedly completed the trial. They said that since I will soon become king, I can start doing the kingdom affairs that they are sharing now."

"I never imagined that a Naga king would have to manage so many things, even the hatchery. I'm starting to regret why I took the adult trial. I don't think my father died from desalination; maybe he died from exhaustion."

"That's why I said I'd let you make contact with the frogmen. There are some things you can hire them to do. These frogmen prefer to live on land, and they won't compete with you for the lake's waters." Charles waved his hand, comforting the Naga prince. "The weather is still a bit cold now, and this area hasn't been cleared yet. After spring, I'll have the frogmen move here, and then you can make contact with them."

"Frogmen?" Pazzani recalled his previous encounters with the frogmen and nodded a few times. "Would they agree?"

"Definitely, after all, you were the 'savior' who passed through the Gate of Egg-Born." Sharl patted Pazzani's scales. "But relatively speaking, regarding the alliance with the goblins, the elders haven't said anything? Aren't they afraid that the goblins will become the next 'humans'?"

"The elders discussed it, and they did have this concern at first," Pazzani said with a smirk, twitching his mustache. "But I told them that we have nowhere to run now, and we can't just hide in the underground river. Besides, you received the revelation when the Naga people worshipped nature, which is completely different from the situation a thousand years ago. The Mother Tree also thinks so. The elders and I don't know, but the Mother Tree has lived for so long, it must know."

Hearing Pazzani's words, Sharl smiled and let out a sigh of relief. "Alright, at least the goblin race needs to cooperate with you. Compared to other races, goblins are much weaker. A human warrior can easily deal with several goblins. If we want to survive, we can only establish good relations with other races and unite our strength to grow stronger."

"If we try to break our promises, humans will not forgive the goblins."

"Then what should we do? Attack them directly?" Pazzani tried to ask aloud.

"As agreed before, your people will only help me with reconnaissance. If they do reach Lake Dallen and land, we'll handle everything else. The Naga will not participate in the battle." Shar reiterated the previous battle plan. After receiving Mary's intelligence report, he immediately contacted Pazzani in Lake Dallen and specified the cooperation plan.

"Could it be...?"

"It's alright," Charles waved his hand to interrupt the Naga prince's next words, "I think we can handle it for now, and we must handle it. If we don't defeat these humans head-on in one go, there will be more trouble later. Moreover, exposing the Naga race to humans now might attract more powerful guys. Those high-level mages are probably still looking for you."

There's one thing Sharl didn't tell Pazzani: it's currently the time of the God War. This Crusader just abruptly rushed into the Nightmare Forest, completely disregarding everything. After defeating them directly, the Church of War probably won't use its precious manpower for further probing. After all, how could a God War happen in the Nightmare Forest?

"Alright," Pazzani hesitated for a moment before nodding heavily. "Then, brother, you need to be careful. Run if you can. You have that teleportation portal, right? If all else fails, just hide. If those soldiers can't find you, they might just leave."

"I hope so," Charles looked north towards Lake Dallen, but he knew in his heart that this situation was unlikely to occur. After all, the goblins had already begun leveling the land, and part of the southern district of the city had been cleared. Such artificial traces could not escape the eyes of the Crusaders, and they would not let the goblins go so easily.

We must find a way to keep this Crusader detachment here and prevent them from smuggling out any information about the Goblin Kingdom.

In his past memories, Shire would occasionally hear legends about the Goblin Kingdom, but those were just legends, at most just things people said in their spare time to tease the high-ranking nobles and kings.

However, once the news that the Goblin Kingdom truly exists spreads, it will inevitably attract the attention of those with ulterior motives.

Shire looked around and saw many goblins busily building this goblin city, their faces glistening with sweat. In the cold winter, their bodies steamed with heat, perhaps for a stable city to live in, perhaps to exchange their silver coins for some light beer, or perhaps simply to have a bowl of hot, sweat-inducing forest soup the next morning.

"What's meant to happen will happen," Charles squinted. "It doesn't matter whether it comes sooner or later, but luckily we're not weak either."

After he finished speaking, his gaze drifted to the distance, where the elephant lord was leading his herd, constantly trampling the ground, and a smooth road appeared.

…………

"Vice Commander," a Crusader soldier tentatively asked Lingard in the cabin, "Are we really not going to contact the President again?"

"What are you afraid of?" Lingard turned his head and glanced at the other person out of the corner of his eye.

"No, it's not fear," the warrior puffed out his chest, his armor clanging metallically, "it's just that we're dealing with an evil god this time, and I think it's better to report something this important."

"If I could contact her, I would have done so long ago," Lingard said irritably. "That shorty, the president is never seen. Every time she returns to her post, she stays for a few months and then disappears again. Occasionally, I can only contact her through notices posted in the various churches scattered across the continent."

Those who know her understand that she has something to do, while those who don't might think that our Holy Crusade's commander-in-chief is a traveler.

"Then..." the soldier hesitated.

"Do as I say, remember the blood oath you swore before the idol, to protect the weak and crush evil for your glory and faith." Lingard's sharp gaze swept across the face of the Crusader warrior, who immediately lowered his head in shame upon meeting his eyes. "This evil god is an evil creature that has affected human activities. I believe many human adventurers have also lost their lives to it. Killing the evil god and making this known to the world, letting the world know the glory of the God of War, is the mission of our Crusader."

"Or perhaps you're not a qualified Crusader, and you've forgotten your blood oath?" He turned to the warrior and pointed a finger at his chest.

"I will always remember my blood oath, and I will never forget it." The Crusader warrior straightened his chest once more.

"Very good, the gods will remember everything." Lingard nodded and patted the warrior on the shoulder.

"Then, Commander, the previous intelligence also said that a large group of goblins are siding with the evil god. What should we do with these goblins?"

"Just goblins," Lingard chuckled dismissively. "Stinky green dwarves with filthy blood. Just kill them."

"Don't let a single one escape," he said with a smile, clenching his fist. "I've come up with a plan. If we pile up all those goblin heads and put the head of an evil god on top, it will surely shock the world."

"This..." The soldier hesitated. He imagined the scene and couldn't help but shudder.

"Hmm?" Lingard glanced at the other person. "Are you sympathizing with those evil creatures?"

"No, Commander, I did not. Destroying evil is our vow, and I will not forget it. Not a single goblin will survive!" the Crusader warrior shouted.

"Go on out. Come back and tell me when you get there." Lingard waved his hand, dismissing the other person.

"An oath?" He looked out the cabin window. The forests on both sides of the Darren River were lush and green, and birdsong could be heard constantly coming from the woods. "If I don't kill the evil god, how can I apply to the bishop to become the prefect?"

"Only by placing the head of the evil god before the world will everyone know my fame, and only then can I rightfully become the leader of the Holy Army. The bishop has already appointed me as God's chosen one, and as long as we win this divine war, all the price will be worth it."

As he spoke, he reached for his waist and made a slow motion as if drawing a sword. "So what if you have three 'spiritual' swords? When it comes to swordsmanship, I'm not much worse than you."

Lingard held his arms out to the side, his hands seemingly holding something, but it was impossible to tell from the outside; it looked like he was holding a wisp of air.

"After this, let's see who dares to call me 'Deputy Commander' again." With that, he waved his hand, and with a "whoosh," the ropes and debris hanging on the cabin wall fell to the ground. The ropes looked as if they had been cut by something, with an unusually smooth and intact cut surface.