Chapter Intermission: The Ones Pushing from Behind
The goblin leading the monster army is one of the four appointed generals, Gi Gi Orudo. Within the monster army is the combat unit, which leads the monster beasts, and the supply unit, which is stationed at the rear. Goblins are omnivorous and can eat the meat of the monster beasts raw and drink river water without any problems. If humans did the same thing they would surely find themselves sick. Goblins had eyes that worked so well in the dark that it was laughable to compare them to humans, and they also possessed strong bodies that could be likened to the flesh of beasts.
But despite all that, until the king appeared, the goblins have been living in the forest at the bottom of the food chain. Save for the Kobolds, they were an existence meant only to be eaten. Just overturning this one thing alone would already be enough to marke the greatness of the Goblin King, but the Goblin King brought forward even more advanced ideas.
Supply.
Before the king came to power, the goblins merely ate what they came across. So long as there was meat, they would eat even in excess.
But even without that, they had much difficulty in procuring foods. If they didn’t eat what was in front of them, someone else might steal it. Although the goblins managed to rise to power within the forest as one of the strong, they were not blessed with a powerful body. Of course, there are those who have gained such power through evolutions, but goblins after birth were not blessed in physique at all.
In order for them to transform from prey to predator, they had to receive training in both fighting and cooperation in the Fortress of the Abyss under the behest of the king. At the same time, thanks to the monster army and the cooperation of the demihumans, the goblins even began advancing on the department of raising livestocks.
They domesticated the monster beasts.
To the goblin beast tamers, monster beasts were both family they lived alongside with and an essential food supply. Goblins like Gi Gi, who possessed a constitution, that attracted monster beasts just by standing were a rarity among the goblins. In that sense, Gi Bu Rakuta was truly the back bone of the monster army.
Unlike Gi Gi, who fought in the frontlines, Gi Bu stayed outside of battle and worked to ensure and pick out monster beasts that could be used for food or for fighting. He even helped out in increasing the reproduction rate of the monster beasts.
He raised monster beasts, and saved them for later to use as a food supply.
It sounds simple when put into words, but feeding an army with that took a lot of effort. As such, the supply unit of Gi Gi Orudo’s monster army led by Gi Bu came to be called as ‘The Ones Behind Everyone (Kurua)’.
The Kurua led by Gi Bu were increasing by the day due to the construction of the ranches, allowing them to serve more food for the army. From the Forest of Darkness, to the Western Region, to the Border Lands, monster beasts of all sorts were being domesticated.
There are three main bases for the Kurua. In the Fortress of the Abyss within the Forest of Darkness, in the Colonial City within the Western Region, and in the Fortress of the Foggy Plains (Melgion) within the Border Lands. 3 large-scale ranches have been made in these locations.
They decide on a suitable size, they build fences to protect from other monster beasts, and then they raise monster beasts inside. There are many different kinds of monster beasts. In the Forest of Darkness, there are Eirel Deer (Spear Deer) and Three-Horned Boars (Triple Horn). In the western region, there are the terrifying carnivorous horses and the three-eyed unruly horses brought from Gi Gu’s region.
In the border lands, there are three-horned boars (triple horn) and three-eyed unruly horse. Lately, however, they have also started to raise Prairie Big Horned Cattles (Bulbita) and Man-Eater Birds.
For the Man-Eater Birds, it’s not just their meat that’s eaten. Their eggs also serve as an important source of nutrient. The meat and milk that can be gotten from the Prairie Big Horned Cattles (Bulbita) are precious as even the humans within the army can eat them.
As their bases increased, the monster beasts they raised also changed. This is because of the increasing number of humans in the army and the special characteristics of the monster beasts. In the first place, the term ‘monster beasts’ simply refer to all beasts that humans cannot handle. Monster Beasts are animals that evolved to adapt to a region and are unlike the animals raised by humans in that they are able to absorb ether.
There are many cases wherein monster beasts grow extremely weak after being taken away from the environment they are used to. That remains true regardless if it’s for a big monster beast or a small and weak monster beast. This was the problem that Gi Bu’s Kurua had the hardest time with when moving from the Forest of Darkness to the Western Region.
Of course, there are exceptions, and monster beasts that migrate at longer distances are not limited. The horse-type monster beasts, for example, do not grow weak much even when away from the environment they are used to. Another example of an exception is when a monster beast is taken to another region immediately after birth.
It was after much trial and error that Gi Bu and his Kurua were able to progress well with the construction of their bases in the Border Lands. The monster beasts at the Border Lands were all lacking in brutality compared to the monster beasts at the Forest of Darkness.
Perhaps it was because of how dense the Forest of Darkness – to the point that not even light could penetrate it – that the monster beasts in it were the most savage among the regions. The second most brutal would be the monster beasts near the Western Region. Because of the influence of man, there are many monster beasts in the border lands that are docile. Of course, since they’re called monster beasts, they still lay waste to human crops and bring much harm to humans, but to Gi Bu and his Kurua, who were used to the monster beasts of the Forest of Darkness, the monster beasts of the Border Lands were rather adorable.
It was to the point that rare-class beast tamers could tame any of the monster beasts in the Border Lands with no difficulty.
The domestication of monster beasts began with catching. They would weave durable ropes out of vines and use those to bind the monster beasts, and then suppress them until they decided to obey. It was rather forceful, but most monster beasts would become docile after clearly establishing who’s stronger.
Very rarely, there are goblins like Gi Gi, who are blessed with a constitution that makes monster beasts like them. He still needs to catch the monster beast first like anyone else, but unlike others, all he needs to do is raise his hand, and the monster beast would bow its head. Take note, however, that this is the exception and not the rule.
“You can’t use that as a standard.”
That’s what Gi Bu had to say (with his arms folded) when a rare-class goblin asked him how he could become like Gi Gi. Even for Gi Bu, who’s already evolved into a noble class, Gi Gi was a special case.
Once a monster beast has been made subservient, it will no longer go against its master. The reason low-leveled beast tamers can only tame wild dogs is because that’s all the power they have.
A monster beast is successfully tamed if after suppressing it one is able to feed it. There are an infinite variety of feeds depending on the monster beast. For example, even though they are both herbivores, the Prairie Big Horned Cattle (Bulbita) prefers dry grass, whereas the Man-Eater Bird prefers fresh leaves. Gi Bu knew this only from experience.
It would not be wrong to say that Gi Bu and his Kurua are the ones pushing forward the Goblin King’s army to reach their current shocking speed.
It was because of them that the goblin armies could afford to attack immediately after occupying a territory without having to first hunt.
Of the monster beasts raised in the Fortress of the Abyss, the reason the Three-Horned Boars (Triple Horn) and Eirel Deer (Spear Deer) are the most numerous is because of the many different ways they could be used. The Three-Horned Boars (Triple Horn) and Eirel Deer (Spear Deer) raised by Gi Bu Rakuta would of course be fed to the baby goblins, but their bones and pelts would be handed over to the Ganra tribe.
The Ganra tribe are the most skilled of the goblins when it comes to their hands. They are also the only goblins that can use the bow. One of the new endeavors they’ve entered is the betterment of their crafting technology. It is one of the policies that Princess Narsa adopted in order to allow their tribe to gain new standing under the leadership of the king.
The Ganra tribe lived atop trees, known as the Twisted Giant’s Arms, and are separated into three tribes: the Ra, Ru, and Re tribes.
Ra Gilmi, Ra Narsa, and the previous generation, Ra Gilan, are all from the Ra Tribe. The tribe of Ru Rou revolves around being warriors, while the tribe of Re Roen revolves around technology.
Since the king has left for the plains, they have been exchanging technologies with the small people (koro toku). By exchanging technologies with the Koro Toku, who possesses advanced technology and were under the protection of the elves, the technology of the Ganra tribe increased by leaps and bounds.
Pelts sent from the Fortress of the Abyss would be turned into armor through a tanning process, while the bones would be shaved and turned into arrowheads. They used even the horns of grown Eirel Deer (Spear Deer), shaving them and turning them into strong spears. Although shorter than long spears, they were just right for the baby goblins to use.
Monster Beast Products made by the Ganra tribe were able to reach the goblins at the Fortress of the Abyss and the various lodgings by way of the Harpyurea and the Tarpidae.
A portion of the good tanned leather would be transported to the elven forest through the region that the demihumans inhabited. Although they were exchanging technologies, as expected, the highest quality armor could only be gotten from the elven forest.
The threads of the aranea, tanned leather of monster beasts, steel produced by the centaurs and the minotaurs, and Blue-Silver Steel (Srilana) produced by the elves. All of these delicate technologies were combined and given to the koro toku to forge an armor.
The task they have been entrusted this time was to forge a set for the 4 newly appointed generals of the goblins. The one leading the forging process was none other than the one who forged a sword for the king, Kurt Bild Dash. He was introduced to sword forging by his master Dumble Davie David. He was a young talent who showed much interest in the forging of armor.
The goblins do not put much emphasis on armor.
Among the goblins, it is Gi Jii Yubu who puts the most emphasis on it. Shield bearers among humans use shields reinforced with hard iron with their spear and a military formation to minimize losses while maintaining the frontlines.
But presently, most goblins use leather armor at most. That remains true even after evolvution. To the goblins, relying on their heightened ether abilities with each evolution is still the most popular way to fight.
There are even those like Gi Zu Ruo who fought with full presumption that they would end up hurt.
But the newly implemented Four General System makes battles that much more difficult compared to when fighting under the king. After all, around the four generals, there were no more goblins with a higher class than their own. Naturally, that meant the enemy would target them, and unlike before, neither the king nor Pale will be around to give them orders.
Because of that Pale advised the king and asked for new armor to be forged for the 4 generals. Pale wasn’t a goblin. Because of that she was able to grasp the feelings of the goblins that looked up at the king.
If the king were to give them armor, there was no way that they would not put them to good use; hence, a set of armor was forged for them. Still, equipping a goblin with a full set of armor went against their very nature. The strength of the goblins lied in their strong muscles and their ability to take their enemies by surprise in the black of the night. It was best for them to make as little sound as possible.
Pale’s request to forge an armor that remained silent and had little effect on one’s combat abilities was met by Kurt Bild Dash by implementing a dual structure.
A full set of armor will make sound no matter what. That would make it inconvenient for the goblins to move.
As such, the armor had to be made of leather and then be reinforced by blue-silver steel (srilana). A layer of Chain Mail woven out of steel would be placed underneath the armor to protect aganist slashing attacks. Blue-Silver Steel (Srilana) will also be used to reinforce the affected part. Furthermore, the other parts will be daringly cut down, but still defense will still be maintained by way of layers of monster beast leather.
By combining the special traits of two different materials, it was possible to create an armor that increased defense without sacrificing silence.
In the past, monster beast leather was hard to come by and process. Even if one did manage to obtain one, they were usually damaged. But thanks to the cooperation of the goblins, not only was it now possible to procure good tanned leather, even the koro toku have started to look at the special traits of monster beast leather in a new light.
In the past, they would surely say that Blue-Silver Steel (Srilana) is the greatest material and monster beast leather is a level lower, but now, they would have to change the material depending on what traits were demanded. Which was to say that the koro toku have now acknowledged monster beast leather.
The armor they forged was brought to the front lines as quickly as possible and bestowed upon the generals by the king.
Within the Forest of Darkness, the ones responsible for transporting goods are the merchant tribes of The Winged Ones (Harpyurea) and the Mud-Scaled Tribe (Tarpidae), but beyond the forest was different. The harpyurea had to flee from predators in the sky, while the tarpidae couldn’t get past the invisible barrier.
But at the height of the battle at the western region, the goblins were able to secure the ideal place to gather things. The former colonial city, renamed to Middled under the orders of the king, showed signs of developing as a gathering place for goods.
In order to transport goods produced at the Forest of Darkness, human laborers were utilized. These laborers would be protected by the Proud Clan (Leon Heart Clan) and the young goblins. Managing them was the princess of the elves, Princess Shunaria, who went to and fro the western capital while supervising the scattered residences of the demihumans in the surrounding area.
If goods and materials were going to be gathered, then it would only stand to reason that people would be needed to carry them. At the same time, lodging to permit them rest would also be essential. With that came merchants who sold goods to travelers on a long journey, which in turn attracted other crowds as well.
Although the goblins were fine sleeping out in the wilds, perhaps due to the king’s continuing dedication to education or perhaps simply because they were smarter than wild goblins, but the goblins actually preferred to sleep at inns whenever possible. However, goblins did not understand the monetary economy.
As such, Princess Shunaria decided upon a fixed amount for the goblins and petitioned for it at the house of the feudal lord. This system would only remain until the goblins finally understood the monetary economy, but the goblins gathered at Middled were yet young.
Other than a portion of the druids, it would still take some time for them to understand money.
Of the humans working in the transportation of goods, there are many candidates among the soldiers from the villages in the northern part of the western region and the people coming in from the border lands. There are also many soldiers with a family who leave their home to enlist in the goblin army to reduce their taxes.
The people that came from the border lands had already abandoned their lands, so no matter how low the taxes were, it was hard for them to live. No matter how much Yoshu overworked to try and do his job properly, there were just too many borderlanders.
On the other hand, Shumea had much influence over the candidates from the northern part of the western region.
Shumea was a young warrior who, while mediating for the goblins and the humans, was able to fight against the army of Germion Kingdom. Being a young woman herself, she found much popularity among the borders of the western region. The number of soldiers that enlisted out of admiration for her were not at all few. A certain number of those became a part of the transport unit that goes to Middled.
Escorting the transport unit to the western region were of course the Leon Heart Clan and the young goblins. Along the way they would stop at the villages of the demihumans. At the village of the Fang Tribe (Werewolf), who had long dreamed of reclaiming the plains, they would barter with them for their specially processed magic beast bones. They would also barter with the transport unit from Middled to exchange for magic stones.
Due to peddlers being too scared to travel to the demihuman villages, out of fear of the monster beasts attacking them, it is also one of the duties of the transport unit to bring them goods. They were also allowed to barter with the human soldiers and adventurers. They were even free to sell as long it was sensible.
There is no doubt that everything being organized to this extent in such a short time is thanks to the skill of the elves, but the humans, Yoshu and Shumea, also had a part in it. For one, it was them who insisted that it would be too harsh to prevent the soldiers from selling at all, something Fei and the other elves had to acknowledge.
After the transport unit passes the region ruled by the demihumans, they go further down south, and through the Fortress of the Foggy Plains (Melgion), deliver goods to the various areas of the southern region from the frontmost lines of the border lands. The entire trip takes about 30 days on human feet while pulling a number of wagons.
When the armor was finally delivered, the imposing appearance of the generals appeared in the battlefield.
The battle of those supporting from behind continued even when the front lines had fallen into a deadlock, so often times, theirs was a battle even harsher.
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The population of the borderlanders, approximately 10,000.
“GU… This is…”
When that great number appeared before Yoshu’s eyes, he couldn’t help but groan.
“I’m counting on you”, was all the Goblin King had to say before running off to war. Yoshu cursed him countless times in his head, but he had to immediately sort all these people out. He had to decide where they would live, estimate what work they could do, and secure land to give to them…
His work was piled up higher than the mountains and the fatigue that came with it was deeper than the seas.
10,000 citizens. And not just any citizen, but human citizens. Had they been goblins, Yoshu could throw them into the plains and all would be fine. The goblins could hunt on their own and feed themselves, but these were humans. Though these may be borderlanders, these were still 10,000 humans. Until now they have been living their whole lives somewhere under a roof and cultivating crops. All 10,000 of those had just been thrown at him.
Even if it weren’t Yoshu, anyone would want to complain after being given such a tall ordeal.
Fortunately, however, among the people that fled the border lands were village chiefs. Yoshu looked for them and assigned them a part of the western capital as a temporary measure.
As representatives to the feudal lords of the various towns of Razuel, Shirak, and so on… Yoshu explained to them the situation. He promised that he would immediately find work for them and ensure that they would have a place to stay at.
“What do I do? What do I do…”
The reason Yoshu had to solve this problem immediately could easily be understood if one realizes just how dangerous it would be were 10,000 humans to riot. The present situation was still fine. They had just fled from the border lands and held no dissatisfaction with either the Goblin King or Yoshu.
But the moment they realize that they cannot live comfortably, there was no telling what they would do. “Does the Goblin King understand how dangerous it is to bring 10,000 humans here just like that?” Yoshu spat curses in his mind.
“It’s dangerous to gather them into one place, but where am I supposed to put them if I scattered them?”
The western capital alone was too small. That being said, if Yoshu allowed the borderlanders to go to the northern villages, friction would surely occur between them and the natives.
“…What about Middled?”
The former colonial city. Just from scale alone, it could be considered as the second city of the western region. Currently it is being used as a gathering place for supplies to be transported from the Forest of Darkness to the front lines. There is much threat from the monster beasts near the Forest of Darkness, but with the goblins and the demihuman guards around, it could be considered as a rich area.
As Yoshu thought that, he immediately called the representatives of the border lands and spoke to them about moving.
“You will be paying us, yes? There are many elderly and children among us…”
“Please don’t misunderstand. This is not a proposal but an order as mayor of the western capital.”
Yoshu put on a cold mask.
“That’s… But the Goblin King didn’t say anything about—”
“If I may be so blunt, you people probably don’t think you’re asking for protection, but I’m sure you understand that you barged into here on your own accord with no prior preparations.”
Yoshu was bluffing.
But Yoshu knew that his bluff would work well. He has heard about the fate of refugees like them. If so, then these people were very weak and had little to no power to negotiate.
Yoshu found himself sighing at what a terrible job he had to do, but he didn’t allow his cold expression to fail him.
“That’s… But, we—”
“Of course, I will promise you reasonable aid. You must, however, understand that it is impossible to accept all of you into the western capital. This cannot be changed, and neither can the people living here be chased away. I’m sure you understand.”
Seeing the representative knit his brows, Yoshu knew that he needed just one more push.
“I shall speak to Lord Fei of the elves and exempt you from taxes for half a year. You will also be supported with food from the western capital. Although it will be just enough to keep you from starving.”
“…Very well. We thank you for your kindness.”
If the neighboring countries were to be used as a standard, Yoshu’s proposal was extraordinarily good. His proposal was the same thing as saying that he would give half a year of life to these people who’d barged their way in selfishly. Normally, it wouldn’t be strange to turn all of these people into slaves.
After the representatives left, Yoshu was greatly perplexed.
Although he promised to support them for half a year, if they don’t get any help after that, they will all turn into slaves. He needed to take measures. He had to create jobs that would allow them to live.
It would take 5 days on human feet to go west from the western capital.
When Yoshu wondered if it would be so easy to make jobs, he decided he could just copy an already existing organization.
“…The adventurers guild.”
Yoshu thought back in his time as a slave gladiator. During that period when he went from town to town, he recalls that there was a guild known as the adventurers guild in the city.
“There should be a guild like that at the Holy Shushunu Kingdom.”
Would they put up a branch store here if he were to ask them? No, there was no way they would. This was the country of monsters ruled by the Goblin King. In that case, he would have no choice but to do it himself.
The system itself is simple. The western capital would request a job, then the corresponding the number of people would carry it out. The point of contact for such operations will be established at Middled and at the Western Capital. Wages will be paid accordingly.
Wages suitable for labor work will be paid.
For example, the construction of a road. The goblins will probably claim more of the south. At the very least, Yoshu didn’t think that their advance could be stopped so easily. In which case, what they would need the most are the construction of roads that allow them to move quickly. That would require people. Without roads, the transport of goods will be slowed.
A month later, a guild was established in the Goblin King’s kingdom just as proposed by Yoshu.