Today, I actually had the bandwidth to write at the office.
He didn't even need to flaunt his power—the goblins simply fell in line.
After all, they were a weak tribe. If any of them showed the slightest resistance, he intended to crush them with violence without a second thought.
The word of their chief no longer held any weight in Gabiru's mind.
He rounded up warriors from each village and made them bring every last bit of food from the storerooms.
Just like that, he organized an army for himself.
Seven thousand strong.
They were outfitted with worn leather armor, crumbling stone spears, and the like.
Not the most reassuring fighting force, but it would do for now.
Those with no will to fight had already deserted.
"Clan leaders! Are there no other villages in this area?"
The clan leaders exchanged glances at his question.
One of them answered hesitantly.
"Well… 'village' might be a stretch, but there should be a settlement of some kind."
What was that supposed to mean?
That wishy-washy tone got under my skin.
When he pressed them, they started saying something strange.
Apparently, there was a group of goblins who rode Fang Wolves.
It made no sense. The Fang Wolf tribe were powerful monsters that operated in packs.
They were called the rulers of the plains—even the Lizardman Tribe lacked the combat strength to match them on open ground.
For them to submit to lowly goblins? Impossible.
And then they said something even more ridiculous.
The one commanding those goblins was apparently a Slime.
What a joke.
Wasn't a Slime the lowest form of monster out there? Such garbage—even setting goblins aside—the idea that the Fang Wolf tribe would follow it was absurd.
He needed to verify this.
There might be some trick to it. If things went well, he might be able to bring the Fang Wolf tribe under his command.
Driven by his bloated ambition, Gabiru set out.
There was no village where they'd been told to look.
That made him angry, but he held it in. Some patience would be necessary if he wanted to bring the Fang Wolf tribe to heel.
Since breaking free from his chief's control, Gabiru had stopped restraining his own desires.
Still, he could be patient for the sake of his goal.
In his mind, his former chief was nothing more than an obstacle standing between him and building his own legion.
If he could bring the Fang Wolf tribe under his command here, the other Lizardman Tribe members would surely follow him too.
If the mighty rulers of the plains and the king of the marshes joined forces, it wouldn't matter how many of those pig-headed orcs ganged up—they'd have nothing to fear!
Gabiru believed this without a shred of doubt.
Subdue the orc scum and become the ruler of the Jura Forest. That would give him enough standing to serve as a worthy subordinate of Lord
Dreaming of that day made even a little patience feel painless.
He'd moved his main army toward Lake Sis and left them on standby.
They couldn't afford to dawdle over provisions—he needed to act quickly. There was no time to waste.
Upon receiving a subordinate's report that they'd discovered signs of movement, he issued the command.
Including himself, a unit of ten elites.
They mounted their riding lizards and headed for the destination.
As they drew closer to the target location, they showed absolutely no caution.
The Fang Wolf tribe was a threat, sure, but they were following goblins. Probably just the dregs of the pack.
He'd train them himself and restore their true strength! That's what he was thinking.
It was beyond his imagination—what actually awaited them at the end of the road…
His mind was consumed with thoughts of becoming the forest's ruler and serving his beloved Lord Gelmud.
--- We moved to the town's entrance to welcome the envoy.
We waited at ease in the small guardhouse built at the gate, where the lookouts took their breaks.
The group consisted of me,
Shion had prepared tea, and I immediately regretted it.
The girl had no concept of subtlety or refinement. She tried to brute-force her way through everything.
Might makes right! That was exactly her vibe.
When she'd cleaned the place, she'd tried to blow away entire buildings as if to say "wiped clean!" I barely stopped her in time—one step later and we'd have been rebuilding.
"I'm so sorry!!" she'd moped about it, but I couldn't let my guard down.
Everything she did, she tried to solve with sheer force. The thought of what would happen if I took my eyes off her for even a moment was terrifying.
And yet, here she was, enthusiastically declaring that she'd been appointed as my personal caretaker.
Please, stop being so enthusiastic about that.
This tea was just as bad as I'd expected. Tea? Was it really…
I could see some suspicious seaweed-like grass floating in it. Definitely not a drink.
What is this… explain yourself! I shot a glance at Rigurd with those exact feelings, but he smoothly looked away.
What a guy. Benimaru was squeezing his eyes shut and pointedly refusing to look my way.
These people…
While I was grappling with this, Shion watched me expectantly, clearly wanting praise.
Wait! How am I supposed to praise this?
I steeled myself and reached for the cup, when— "Ah! Tea! I happen to be thirsty!"
With that,
GLLLRRRPPP!!!
That's the spirit! I cheered from the bottom of my heart!
Right before my eyes, Shion's face twisted into the visage of a wrathful demon…
But Gobta didn't notice. No—he was in no state to notice.
"Gurk!" Foam erupted from his mouth as Gobta collapsed. His body twitched in violent, dangerous spasms.
That was close. I might've been the one in that state if not for him.
Shion tilted her head with a puzzled look.
I wasn't falling for it. From now on, she was banned from preparing anything food or drink related.
"Ah, Shion. From now on, if you want to prepare food or drinks for anyone, you need to get Benimaru's permission first!"
I laid down the law.
Benimaru's eyes went wide as he looked at me.
Not my problem. You're supervising her—deal with it! I said with my eyes.
Shion and Benimaru both slumped in defeat.
I prayed that going forward, fewer people would have to pay the price.
--- One hour after the alarm blared through the area.
The envoys arrived, their approach heralded by the sound of rumbling footsteps.
Lizardmen climbing down from enormous lizards, carrying themselves with an arrogant air.
Was that one the leader?
"You've worked hard on the welcome! I'll give you lot a chance to join my ranks. Be grateful!!"
He launched into a preposterous declaration out of nowhere.
I was speechless. What was this fool spouting?
"Hmph. I'm sure you've heard. The orc pigs are about to attack here too. I'm the only one who can save you worthless lot!"
So it was true—the Orc Tribe was coming. We were still waiting on
If they were going to clash eventually, fighting together wasn't the worst option…
"Oh yes, I hear someone here has tamed Fang Wolves. Bring that person to me—I'll promote them to executive. Fetch them!"
Um…
Fighting together was definitely a viable option. But did the ally we'd be fighting alongside have to be an idiot?
A useless ally was more trouble than a capable enemy. That was common sense even in the modern world…
I glanced at Rigurd. His mouth hung open, eyes blank.
Benimaru was scratching his head, looking at me with a "can we kill this guy?" expression.
Obviously not.
I didn't even know how to react. This was far worse than the Shion situation.
Hakuro had his arms crossed and eyes closed. He better not be sleeping.
And Shion, who was holding me in her arms, was tightening her grip with a creak— Hey! You're crushing me!
I squirmed in a panic, and she noticed me and loosened her hold.
Being held by her in Slime form was actually pleasant, but it was dangerous.
I'd let my guard down. Getting squeezed to death was no joke. It seemed she still couldn't control her strength properly.
Still, this was a problem. I hadn't expected the envoy to be such an idiot.
"Um, as for taming the Fang Wolves—or rather, making them my servants—that would be me…"
Let's just push the conversation forward.
"Hah? A lowly Slime? Show me proof. Then I'll believe you."
He kept talking down to me from start to finish.
I was starting to get annoyed. In a meeting, you at least listen to what the other side has to say before steamrolling ahead—this guy was looking down on me way too much.
Even back in the corporate world, I'd run into the occasional big-company employee or government official with an attitude, but you rarely saw someone this blatantly foolish.
For such fools, my personal rule was that there was no obligation to treat them with basic courtesy.
Besides, there was never any benefit in having a fool as an ally.
I decided to change my approach.
"
"Yes. I'm here."
Ranga emerged from my shadow. Lately, hiding in my shadow had become his go-to habit.
"Alright, apparently this one has something to say. Go listen to him for me."
Classic handoff.
Ranga would deal with him more effectively than I could.
A Slime's appearance, dismissing me as a nobody and refusing to even listen—it was worse than Rigurd when we first met.
Can you blame me for not wanting to deal with him?
Besides, those who can sense my Demon Aura would see through any attempt to hide it anyway, and those who can't won't notice even if I flaunt it.
You'd think they'd have figured that out.
Ranga, understanding my intent— "I have received orders from my master to deal with you. I will listen. Speak!"
He confronted the envoy, intimidating the Lizardman Tribe members.
The envoy stammered, trying to maintain his dignity.
"Y-yes. So you are the Fang Wolf tribe? The clan leader, perhaps? I am Gabiru, warrior chief of the Lizardman Tribe!"
He introduced himself with unearned confidence.
"Remember the name. As I said, I am a 'name-bearer.' Rather than that Slime, why not form an alliance with me?"
He announced all this without a hint of shame.
I wanted to deck him!
No, no—this was the moment to play the big shot and graciously forgive his rudeness.
I was an adult. Stay calm.
And the person I needed to stay calm even more was Shion. Wait—don't squeeze any harder!
I shifted in her arms and she immediately started bowing and apologizing. I really wished she'd be more careful.
But to think a lizard would act so high and mighty…
Go get him, Ranga! I cheered silently.
"Grrr. A lizard, of all things… I am no longer of the Fang Wolf tribe. And you can't even tell that much… what a small fry."
Ranga growled through gritted teeth, his eyes glowing red. He was seething in silence.
Ranga… don't go too far on him… Is that lizard going to be okay?
If he weren't an envoy, I'd have just laughed at him getting pummeled and called it his own fault.
"Very well! Let me prove my strength! Who will be my opponent?"
Come on, seriously? That joke's a bit much.
This lizard really needed to read the room. He was the weakest one here by a mile.
If I had to rank him, he might be stronger than Rigurd, but…
Rigurd, for all his flaws, had strength equivalent to Rank B.
He was the goblins' king and their most powerful warrior.
The average member of the Goblin race had evolved to around Rank C+, and Rigurd had been enhanced far beyond that baseline.
Of course, a good chunk of that boost came from his superior equipment.
Sure, this lizard was apparently a "name-bearer" and therefore a powerful individual, but among this group, he was clearly outclassed.
Where did this confidence even come from?
We all exchanged looks.
Now then, who should take him on…
"Heh heh heh. Very well. If you can defeat one of my Gale Storm Wolves, I'll hear you out."
Ranga pushed the conversation forward.
Good. We almost had a fight breaking out over who got to take him on.
Everyone had that "I'm gonna crush him myself" look in their eyes, and it was getting dangerous.
Somehow, seeing those expressions actually helped me calm down.
When someone around you snaps first, it has a cooling effect on everyone else.
In the case of this crew, I was probably the only one who cooled off, but oh well.
"You're sure? You'd let your subordinate handle this?
Well, rather than thinking up excuses for when you lose, perhaps delegating to your men is the wiser choice!"
WOOOOO—!!! I wanted to hit him.
I'd finally calmed down, and now I was angry all over again.
Ranga calmly summoned one of his subordinates.
It seemed he'd recently gained the ability to summon fellow pack members as well.
Visually, a black wolf emerging from the shadows had a quietly impressive flair.
"Grrr. Shut that lizard up!"
"Gaoo!" (Heh!)
Then, turning to the lizard— "If you want me to lend you my strength, show me yours first. Now—begin!"
And with that, Ranga's single command launched the battle.
Gabiru—the lizard—readied his three-pronged spear and braced himself, carefully tracking the Gale Storm Wolf's movements.
The Storm Wolf, in contrast, stood there in complete composure.
With a light kick off the ground, it burst to combat speed in an instant.
Overwhelming speed that exceeded Gabiru's reaction time.
Gabiru, unable to react, probably couldn't even process what had happened.
In a single instant, the wolf slipped inside Gabiru's guard and slammed into him with a body check. As Gabiru crumpled, the wolf circled behind him, clamped its jaws around his neck, and launched into the air.
It spun once midair, then drove Gabiru into the ground.
All of this happened in the blink of an eye.
Not Ranga himself, but one of his subordinates—a Gale Storm Wolf—had completely overwhelmed Gabiru, a Rank B warrior chief of the Lizardman Tribe.
I knew Ranga was getting stronger by the day, but for his subordinates to have evolved this much…
Gabiru's scale armor was shredded from the attack, though he was only knocked unconscious.
Gabiru's entourage had been about to shout encouragement but froze in place.
They had no idea what had just happened.
"Hey, the match is over. I'm declining your offer to join his ranks.
If you want to discuss cooperating against the orcs, we're open to that.
For now, take him and get out."
At my words, the Lizardman Tribe members finally started moving.
And just like that, the troublesome Lizardman Tribe envoys departed.
However…
The Orc Tribe army was on its way. What were we going to do about that?
Just when we'd gotten this headache of a problem, the only potential allies turned out to be the unreliable Lizardman Tribe.
Thinking about what lay ahead left me feeling thoroughly depressed.
Now then, how should I proceed with negotiations from here…