Chapter 9

# Chapter 9: The New Adventurer Bern (7) – Goblin Lord

Mounting a horse is a privilege exclusive to those with wealth.

Since maintaining a horse involves a significant financial burden, only those with substantial means can afford its upkeep.

Even for relatively successful adventurers, while it’s not entirely impossible, it’s highly uncommon for an adventurer to personally own a horse.

While they might be useful for long-distance travel, in battles, they often end up being more of a hindrance. Besides, adventuring is fundamentally a party-based activity, meaning to truly take advantage of mobility, the entire group would need to own horses.

If one has the money for that, wouldn’t it be smarter to spend it on precious gear, potions, or magic scrolls instead of horses?

In short:

Blankah had never ridden a horse in her life.

In fact, she’d never even experienced something that people consider “fast.”

“KYAAAHHHH!”

“You’ll bite your tongue if you keep your mouth open like that.”

If only this human would stop!!

Blankah wanted to shout, but she lacked even the energy for that.

Her senses were being overwhelmed by the dizzying streaks of the passing scenery and the unsettling feeling of floating in mid-air.

The only thing she could do was to cling tightly to Bern with all her strength to avoid falling.

Ironically, Bern’s back felt unusually soft due to her grip, but Blankah, paralyzed by fear, had no time to think about such things.

“Grueek?”

Even while screaming loudly as they rode past, hoping to avoid drawing attention was nothing short of wishful thinking.

The goblins, realizing the unusual situation, spotted Bern and Blankah and prepared to fight. However, Bern neither drew his sword nor stopped to set Blankah down and regroup; instead, he charged straight into the group of goblins.

And with a powerful kick, he sent green-skinned bodies flying.

PUUUURCH!

The ribs of the goblin struck in the chest instantly shattered, and Bern’s kick pierced straight through its insides, turning it into a bloody mess.

The goblin died instantly, unable to even scream. The other goblins nearby froze, unsure of what just happened, but Bern wasted no time.

“Take your shot.”

Instead of asking questions like “Where?” or “What?” Blankah bit her lip and silently extended her right arm.

A spell, “Incinerate Wood,” shot out of her hand and hit the cluster of dumbfounded goblins.

“GYAAAAA!?”

It wasn’t a direct hit, but the heat of the explosion was enough to startle them. With his free right hand, Bern swung his sword, quickly eliminating the rest.

“Let’s continue like this. However, we may need an intermediate-level spell later, so if you’re running low on mana, please let me know.”

“Understood… Can we go a little slower? Urp!”

Blankah’s muttering suddenly stopped.

Bern shook his head subtly, already guessing what had happened.

“Because I told you you’d bite your tongue if you kept your mouth open.”

There was no need to worry that Blankah might strangle him if she heard that—he was already being strangled.

From Blankah’s perspective, she was simply clinging for dear life, but to any ordinary person, her grip would’ve made breathing difficult. Of course, being Bern, his extraordinary physique wasn’t affected.

From then on, it was a near-repetition of the same tasks.

Bern continued riding without pause. When goblins blocked their path, he didn’t stop—either trampling them or asking Blankah to cast spells.

“Take your shot.”

POOOOOOM!

“Fire at will.”

POOOOOOM!

“One more.”

POOOOOOM!

Blankah’s spell accuracy wasn’t very high.

Most of her shots missed rather than hit.

Bern didn’t reprimand her, though. Given her unstable stance and blurred vision, he thought it reasonable.

But Blankah was different.

She had a goal: the eradication of Richi. This mission was the first step toward that goal.

Here was Bern, showing off his skills, while she was nothing but a burden clinging to his back and missing with every spell?

She wasn’t the type to dismiss failure so easily.

Bern realized this as well, noticing her reaction time and spell precision progressively improving.

Indeed, Bern thought, she was more than just talented—she was a good companion.

Focusing ahead, they reached the end of the first fork in the road.

Mountains of various food supplies and materials came into view.

Judging by the appearance, this route seemed to lead to a goblin storage area.

In front of the warehouse stood a goblin significantly taller than the others, exuding an unusual presence.

High-quality leather armor and a steel sword glinted in the light, his eyes sharply focused on Bern.

Unbeknownst to Bern, this goblin was the second-in-command of the goblin horde.

Commanding human slaves, he had custom-made exclusive armor and was granted one of only three steel swords the horde could produce.

Currently, his strength was comparable to that of an average human warrior, and should the goblins ever establish a true kingdom, he had the potential to become the Lord’s knight.

Uniquely intelligent among the goblins, comparable to a middle school student rather than the elementary school-level of most of his kin, he roared at the approaching Bern.

If translated into human language, it might sound like this:

“Come at me, human! By the order of my great lord, this treasure cannot be handed over to anyone!”

To this, Bern’s reply was immediate.

POFF! SHCHUNK!

There was no dramatic exchange of words or intense eye contact, no heated sword duel between the different species.

With a flick of his foot, Bern launched a pebble into the goblin’s face, and while he was momentarily stunned, Bern swiftly beheaded him with his sword.

The only being capable of understanding that second-in-command’s words was an evil demon lurking in the shadows, who shook his head disapprovingly.

Had he faced a real rookie adventurer, he might have become a mid-boss or even a fierce rival. How unfortunate, to meet his end like this.

“This route appears to be a dead end. Let’s turn back.”

“Hold on. Can you let me down for a moment?”

Bern was about to suggest that they retrieve any rewards later, but thought better of it.

He considered it somewhat disrespectful to underestimate his companion like that.

Blankah had demonstrated her competence so far, and had even been adventuring for a longer time than some veterans. If she made a request, Bern trusted there must be a valid reason.

Examining the storeroom, Blankah soon nodded.

“Sure enough, they’ve collected oil separately.”

In the corner of the warehouse stood a large barrel filled with a peculiar-smelling liquid, presumably extracted from prey or fruit and gathered in one place.

Bern found this intriguing.

“Are you planning to use this for arson? But burning it here would be meaningless, and carrying the barrel as is would be difficult.”

“Just watch.”

Blankah pulled out a fist-sized object from her bag that looked to Bern like a brown tuft of cotton.

As she dipped the tuft into the oil, it rapidly absorbed the liquid and grew in size.

What was strange was that even though the barrel of oil decreased by more than half, the tuft of cotton only doubled in volume and continued to feel dry to the touch.

“Is this also magic?”

“Not magic, but it is made from magic-infused plants. It was created by an alchemist as a water pouch, capable of absorbing significantly more liquid than its own size. It also doesn’t leak unless physically damaged.”

“An extremely innovative item, by the looks of it.”

“But no one uses it. You can reduce the volume but not the weight, and once you open it with a blade, the contents keep shrinking until they’re all gone. For a water pouch, you should be able to drink the amount you want and preserve the rest, but that’s impossible here, there’s no reusability, and it isn’t cheap, so the store eventually went out of business.”

“Why do you have it then?”

“The alchemist hired me as a bodyguard, saying something about this being revolutionary and strange people might try to steal it. When his store went bankrupt, he couldn’t pay me, so I took it instead.”

“…”

Finally, the tuft absorbed all the oil from the barrel, swelling to the size of a basketball, at which point Blankah declared.

“Pick it up.”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s heavy but not too big, right? I can’t carry it, so you have to. And when we need to create a big explosion, throw it at the enemies. I’ll set it on fire.”

Bern hesitated momentarily, wondering if this was a good idea, but eventually picked up the tuft.

Despite its powdery surface, holding it with one hand wasn’t too strenuous.

Returning to the initial fork in the road, they spotted a group of goblins milling about nearby, seemingly unaware of what was happening.

With a combination of kicks and low-tier spells, they crushed the goblins and proceeded down the second path.

This route was similar to the first one leading to the warehouse until about halfway through, but deep inside, it was entirely different.

It was a factory.

No, a factory filled not with goblins but with humans.

“…”

Mechanically, the humans were crafting weapons and armor for the goblins, their faces etched with despair and resignation. Some were not even properly clothed, their “resources” having been entirely seized by the goblins.

Goblins wielding clubs and short whips were guarding them, shouting in alarm upon spotting Bern and Blankah.

Of course, they didn’t wait to see what would happen next.

Without hesitation, Bern and Blankah either slashed or incinerated the goblins, turning the workshop into a bloodbath filled with the scent of burning flesh.

Bern questioned the humans.

“Are those present here the only survivors?”

“What? Uh…”

“What’s happening…?”

Held captive, the humans were all dazed, unable to coherently answer Bern’s questions. Their minds were overwhelmed by the sight of the seemingly invincible goblins dying like insects.

Just as Bern frowned, someone spoke out.

“No! There are about ten more people inside!”

From the corner of the factory emerged a man who had been carving something into wood with a sharp stone.

“Are there goblins inside?”

“Normally, yes, but they were recently summoned elsewhere. There are none now!”

“Then can the people here gather together and prepare to leave at a moment’s notice? It’s not possible now, as there are likely more goblins at the entrance.”

“It can be done!”

“We’re trying to reach the leader. If you go left at the fork, does it lead there?”

“There will be another fork to the left, take the right path then! You’re looking for a large goblin with glowing golden eyes!”

He was quick and precise in his responses.

Although it wasn’t ideal that the other captives were still dazed in place, this person’s fluent and detailed answers were suspicious in their own way.

Bern’s eyes quickly scanned the man.

“…He’s a resourceful human.”

Not only was he seen handling document-like tasks, but his eyes were alive, unlike others in the vicinity. He likely had a position of relative ease due to his cooperation with the goblins. Even now that the goblins were dying, he was immediately switching allegiances.

Though there was a high probability he would betray Bern and Blankah the moment things turned unfavorable, Bern didn’t care.

In comparison to those who couldn’t even comprehend the situation and froze, this type was more useful. The point was as long as Bern and Blankah didn’t show weakness, the man wouldn’t dare.

“I’ll leave it to you then.”

“Understood! I’ll take responsibility! Hey! Everyone! This is your chance to escape! Move, move!”

With a sense of ownership, the man began issuing commands, prompting Blankah to glance at him with bemusement.

“Can we trust him?”

“He’s better than those who are powerless, isn’t he?”

Returning to the fork, the pair took the only remaining path to the left.

As the man predicted, another fork appeared, so they took the right path this time.

The advance was smooth.

Indeed, there were no goblins blocking their way, and though the pair kept silent, their pace didn’t slow.

Reaching the depths of the cave:

A tremendous cavern, large enough to hold an entire mansion.

Instead of the previous chaotic appearance, this place was filled with many goblins fully prepared for battle.

“—So it was you two. You who have trampled my territory and caused chaos.”

The Goblin Lord, seated on a chair covered in leather, greeted them, attempting to mimic humans.