Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Orc Hunt I

Ten mornings and ten evenings had passed since the day they called me king .

I left most of the hunting to my underlings while I pondered to myself what I’d just experienced .

What I’d experienced was something impossible . Something that could only be seen in a game . If I had to put it into words, then what I’d experienced was a ‘level up’, or in other terms, an ‘evolution’ .

What should I think of this hypothesis?

It’s not as if I don’t feel sad to have such childish thoughts… However!

I can find no other way to express it .

“This is a… fantasy . ”

“What is?”

Lost in my thoughts, I let out my voice . When my adjutant heard that, he couldn’t help but inquire .

“It’s… nothing . ”

Speaking of convenience, I’ve become somewhat capable of speech . And ever since the day I became a red goblin, or for convenience’s sake a goblin rare, the difference in the treatment the goblins had toward me, compared to before, was like the difference between heaven and earth .

Why did their behavior change? To put it earnestly, it’s because of the power I now have .

The law of the jungle . That is the irrationality of this world, the absurdity, the rule that was driven into me .

Right now, I may not be able to call my life comfortable, but at the very least, I am able to live unrestrained . Honestly speaking, being called a king despite only having 20 creatures under me feels like a diminution of the term ‘King’ .

This is a position that I received upon becoming a goblin rare, however…

The surging thoughts within my head piled up even further .

Regarding that level up… I wonder…

Did I turn into this because I killed that goblin rare? Or was I perhaps already in the process of evolving, and it only so happens that I evolved the moment I killed it?

As layers of hypotheses began to overlap I thought to myself, “If it’s that, then as long as I wasn’t killed, I would eventually become like this . ” However…

If it’s the other, then if I kill something else I can gain an even greater power .

In other words, if I were to kill an orc, I would become an orc .

If I killed that giant spider, then…

No . I supplant my hypothesis .

If it’s really an evolution, then is it even possible for a creature to turn into something completely different?

But then again, this is ‘fantasy’ . Nothing should be impossible .

By what logic, by what reason was it that my body was changed so much in a short period of time? I don’t know . The only thing I’m certain of is that this isn’t a miracle .

Hmm…

I need more samples .

Right .

“You . ”

“Yes?”

“Are there other kings like me?”

The adjutant-like goblin looked around restlessly, then it brought its ugly face close to me, and then said this .

“One there… Another over there… Two in that direction . ”

… Hey, aren’t there quite a bit?

But this should mean that there’s an existence that holds power even greater than mine . At the very least, there should be quite a few of them amongst the goblins .

“Is there someone… above the kings?”

Oh, this is a pretty good question . I might actually get something good out of this .

“A great king…”

Muttered the goblin as it shook its head .

Hmm… Seeing it shake its head like this, it’s actually quite amiable .

But a great king, huh? If it says that there’s no such thing, then at the very least, there shouldn’t be one to the extent of this adjutant’s knowledge .

I began to ponder again .

A great king, huh?

I came to understand this the moment I became a goblin rare, but apparently, these creatures called goblin are at the bottom of this forest’s so called hierarchy .

The small animals aside, the only ones beneath the goblins are those on the level of the kobolds and the slimes .

The goblins are a far cry from the orcs . And as for those on the level of the giant spider, we’re not even in the same league . Because of that, we risk our lives when we go out to hunt for food .

The orcs who steal our spoils, and the giant spider who eats goblins . We struggle through many things, but no matter what, a relapse of that intense hunger I felt before cannot be permitted .

“King . Feed… here . ”

With the arrival of the hunting squad . I remembered my hunger, and I began to stroke my belly .

However, as I began to rub my belly, I grabbed my stomach that seemed like it was about to cry, and I furrowed my brows deeply .

“King . The feed . ”

The goblins respectfully offered to me a small animal . Then it came to my attention that they were all half dead . Some have lost an arm, others have had their ears bitten . And then, there are even those who are bleeding blue blood .

“What happened?”

At my inquiry, the goblins of the hunting squad looked at each other .

“Orc…”

They whispered, as they all lowered their heads and sunk their shoulders . Do they think I’m going to rebuke them for this?

That aside, it would appear that they were robbed .

“Got it . ”

I casually snatched their offering and put it in my stomach .

Orc bastards .

Why? Why is it that I, who feels no sense of good will, and in fact even feel hate and repugnance toward these goblins, can feel a mysterious anger budding within me?

…I’ve decided . I’m hunting the orcs .

As those thoughts surfaced, a desire to fight simmered from inside me .

Is it because of the changes in my body? I don’t recall ever being a war freak . To think that I could actually be roused this easily, I almost don’t want to believe it .

Putting those thoughts aside, I began to think of a way to hunt the orcs .

▼△▼

Sun Tzu once said, “Know yourself, know your enemy, and you will not need to fear the result of a hundred battles . ”

Actually, I don’t really need to borrow the words of such a great person . What I have to do has already been decided . Thanks to the previous case, I already know all too well just how much stronger the orcs are compared to the goblins

However, I must kill them .

Then in that case, what should be done?

The idea of the previous goblin rare to defeat the orcs with number wasn’t wrong .

If there is an opponent that you need to defeat . And that foe happens to be stronger than you by itself, then what should one do? The answer, numbers . This is a strategy that humans have applied since time immemorial . The humans work together and form groups . Then in order to sharpen their killing efficiency, they made use of weapons . And in order to bring out the most out of their numbers, they came up with strategies and tactics .

However, our enemy this time isn’t a human .

It’s an orc .

There’s no need to go that far for something like that .

To put it briefly, what I’m going to use this time is a kind of weapon . Only, the goblins who are powerless are unable to cut through the fat of the orcs with normal weapons .

“Go after the orcs . ”

Information about them is necessary .

“If they notice you, run . ”

I need to be strict with this command . In order to win, the power in numbers is a must .

For orcs, and even for those beyond them . All the way until the top of this forest’s hierarchy .

I pass the orders to my goblin underlings .

Search for the orcs, and come back alive .

I don’t know how much they can abide by these two orders, but it’s imperative if we are to kill the orcs .

The goblins dispersed, and then I went into the forest to stock up on weapons .

▼△▼

Three days has passed since I sent the goblins into the forest to find the orcs . During that time, I stocked up on the necessary weapons in the forest .

From the information the goblins had gathered, just yesterday they were able to find an orc that moved alone . At that, I gave the goblins orders to observe that orc to confirm that it travelled the same road every day, and then to quickly get some food before going back .

This is war .

A war between an orc and 21 goblins .

One can’t fight on an empty stomach . This is a truth that has even surpassed the barriers of race, and is shared by all . As I recalled that, I ordered the hunting squad to find feeds, while I set the weapons at the site the orc will pass .

“There!”

At my orders, the goblins began to dig a hole with undivided attention .

A hole only big enough to allow a single orc to fall completely, and deep enough so that it can never climb back up .

This is the one advantage that goblins have over orcs . Goblins are horrible at fighting, but when it comes to digging, their speed is in a different league .

Now that I think about it, even the dark den I was born in could only be entered through a tunnel big enough for a single goblin .

Find the orcs, and come back alive .

That was the order I gave to the goblins . And with their actions they showed me their loyalty .

Then in that case, I should respond accordingly to that loyalty . To slay the enemy, that is the duty of I, who has 20 goblins under his command .

Right?

The goblins kept digging the hole till nighttime . When they finished, we filled and disguised it, then we went back to our den .