Forests Don't Support Idle Goblins

"3 gold and 20 silver".

The blacksmith shop owner said obsequiously.

John sized up the middle-aged man in front of him. He was wearing a high-quality cotton long coat, brightly colored and covered with embroidery. His thick, oily double chin trembled slightly with his smile, and the soft linen hat he held was decorated with a long-tailed bird feather.

All signs indicate that the other party's status is vastly different from their own.

"This price..." Little John wondered if the price was too high. After all, an iron greatsword, three pairs of frayed leather gloves, and a half-body single-sided breastplate covered in scratches didn't seem to be worth that much money.

"Oh, how about 3 gold and 50 silver?" The shopkeeper bowed slightly, picked up the leather gloves, and said, "The iron sword is 1 gold coin, the breastplate is 1 gold coin and 50 silver, and I'll add 10 silver for the gloves."

John said, "The gloves are coming undone and are badly worn."

"No, no, they're fine. With a little stitching, they'll still work."

John frowned; he felt that this line should have been his.

Boss, did you pick up the wrong script? This is different from what I heard from other adventurers. They said you were a shrewd businessman.

"Alright, then it'll be 3 gold and 50 silver." Little John nodded and took the money from the shopkeeper.

"Boss, what's the lowest price for this leather armor?" Little John asked, pointing to a studded leather armor.

"Ah, this one is very cheap, only 50 silver."

"Originally 75 silver, such a big discount?"

"This leather armor was recycled and restored, so it's not that new."

"Is that so?" John paused for a moment.

Seeing the other party's hesitation, the shopkeeper lightly patted his fleshy face and said, "Look at my memory, this thing can also be rented, two silver coins a day."

As he spoke, he pushed the leather armor toward Little John.

John took the leather armor and examined it; the material and workmanship were both excellent.

"Boss, are you hiding something from me?" Little John put down his leather armor and stared at the other man.

"How could I dare to be as ruthless as you?"

"Um?"

"I mean decisive, as decisive as you."

Little John smiled and slowly drew the longsword from his waist.

"Spare me! It was Gaunt who did those things. Just kill him and let it go, but spare me."

"Gaunt?" John drew his longsword and placed it on his boss's shoulder. "Tell me the truth."

After some intimidation, the boss spilled everything.

It turns out that Gaunt would attack teammates or lone adventurers, and after killing them, he would take their equipment to the boss to sell.

Gunter had already made an appointment with the boss to sell a longsword, which he would hand over to the boss after killing Little John.

"That scumbag," John said angrily.

"Yes, yes, he's a scumbag," the boss chimed in, while pushing the longsword on his shoulder.

"You just said I killed him?"

"Yes, this greatsword and breastplate are his equipment. Now that they're here, you've definitely taken care of him."

John looked at the items on the counter and, upon closer inspection, they really were Gunter's.

He had been somewhat dazed since returning from the goblins, and only now, after being reminded by his boss, did he notice these items.

"Someone as ruthless as him, you must be incredibly skilled to have killed him. Please, have mercy on me," the shopkeeper said with a fawning smile.

"I didn't kill him." Little John wanted to say that Gaunt was killed by a goblin.

"Don't be afraid. There are many reapers like Gaunt who specialize in killing their teammates, but they all do it in secret."

"The Reaper?"

"Yeah, he sabotages his teammates by selling their gear for money. Gaunt is a veteran; that longbow hanging over there is the one he sold to me a while ago."

Following the boss's finger, John saw a finely crafted carved wooden longbow hanging on the wall.

"How can someone like that find teammates again?"

"Sure, very few people know about this. When a teammate dies, they just say he was killed by goblins. I'm their buyer, so that's how I found out."

"Uh, Gaunt was killed by goblins."

"Goblin, I understand, I understand."

Little John really wanted to say, "What do you know? Gaunt really was killed by goblins."

He knew that everyone thought goblins were the epitome of stupidity; they would just scream and charge at you. Experienced adventurers could simply lower their spears and the goblins would run into them and be strangled.

But Ciel is different.

John increasingly felt that this goblin was extraordinary. He was polite and knowledgeable in every gesture. If John were to replace his tattered trousers with an elegant coat and give him a good wash, John even thought that the two of them should meet in a high-end coffee shop.

"Boss, have you ever heard that goblins speak the Common Tongue?" Little John asked.

"I've never heard of that before." The boss wiped the sweat from his bald head. "But I've heard that goblins worship evil gods, and they even have some kind of evil god's blessing."

"A gift from an evil god?"

"You've heard of goblins, right?" The boss pushed the longsword on his shoulder again. "Goblins can be blessed to create goblins, and those things are incredibly powerful."

"I used to know a harvester who used to come here often to sell equipment, but he hasn't come for a long time now."

"One day I saw him on the street again. He had become a beggar and had lost both arms. I asked him what happened, and he said that he and his teammates encountered a goblin bear. He was the only one who survived, and his arms were smashed off. He ran back with his two limp arms, which were like dough. However, he was delayed for too long, and the healing spells were ineffective, so he had to have them amputated."

John frowned. He had heard of bear goblins before. An adult bear goblin could be up to two meters tall, strong and agile, and could easily kill large beasts such as bears and tigers. Moreover, they were very cunning and would enslave goblins to hunt for them in order to maintain their enormous appetite.

For goblin groups with bear goblins, the Adventurers' Guild recommends a hunting party of 10 or more.

But Little John felt that Shire had absolutely nothing to do with goblins.

He decided to ask the Adventurers' Guild staff for more information later.

"But you're different. You took down the Reaper on your first try. You'll definitely become a hero in the future." The boss's smiling face was covered in sweat.

"A hero? Have you ever seen a hero dressed like me?" Little John laughed self-deprecatingly, though he really wanted to say, "Have you ever seen a hero working for goblins?"

The boss realized his flattery had backfired, and could only awkwardly force a smile.

Little John sheathed his longsword, folded his leather armor, and put it into his bag.

He then ignored the shopkeeper who was wiping away sweat and left the blacksmith shop, brushing past two female adventurers as he went out.

"Sister, this greatsword is nice! Weren't you going to get a new one?"

"Luna, I never said I wanted to change."

"Gentlemen, this greatsword is only 3 gold coins, very cheap." The shopkeeper hurriedly greeted them.

"Three gold coins? That's so expensive!" Luna exclaimed.

"Madam, this greatsword is made of superior materials and is exquisitely crafted. It is a rare find in our shop."

"3 gold..." Luna muttered to herself, pouting.

Then she glanced back at the departing John, and then looked at the boss's shoulder.

After thinking for a few seconds, he slowly drew the short sword from his waist.