บท 50: A raid outside?

The fortifications are set and both moats have transformed into death traps of spiky doom. The only way to access the camp now is to walk over a bunch of wooden planks that can be retracted while retreating.

Setting this up with the help of all the goblins had taken me a few days but I thought it was worth it. It would have been done earlier if I hadn't been called for more duo training sessions with Arthur. There had been no new skills I managed to acquire but my stats had shown some growth after the grueling training Edward had put me through.

With all that done I was thinking of making the goblins some slingshots as Quinn had said but got called into a meeting with Darwin.

I had a bad feeling when Navi suddenly called me and now that I'm sitting across Darwin I think I was right. He is wearing a grave expression as if something bad has happened.

"Glad you could make it. As you can probably tell from the mood some... unfavorable developments have taken place. I wish I could tell you otherwise but you have been given a new task directly by the great dungeon alliance."

"It's just a new task, isn't it? No need to make such a fuss, right?"

"Sigh. I wish it was that simple. Guy, your new task is to train and lead a goblin strike force to destroy a human frontier village outside the dungeon."

"But why? I thought our mission was to defend dungeons not attack innocent villagers!"

"As I said it's not that simple. Hades and Vespasian came up with this strategy. Instead of simply defending once the enemies enter the dungeons they want to establish a safe perimeter around them. Most dungeons are in less populated areas and the cities adventurers frequent are dependant on the food produced in the surrounding villages. If those villages are attacked they will have food shortages and will be forced to abandon the city. That's the plan at least."

"But will they really abandon a city that easily? Also, that won't stop people from the alpha plane."

"Not in the short run but you know those portals they use are dependent on coordinates delivered by the inhabitants of those worlds. If they can't scout new dungeons we'll only have to defend the old ones.

"And there is another reason. Monsters grow much faster when they are fighting to the death. Those goblins you'll lead will experience an explosive growth spurt and that will once again beef up our defenses."

He's got to be joking! We can't attack a village filled with civilians. I can understand killing adventurers since it's kill or be killed but villagers pose no threat to us.

"Guy, I can tell what you are thinking. However, in the eyes of the dungeon masters, villagers are no different from adventurers. If they are left unhindered they will produce another attack. People like Hades don't care about a direct causal relation, they will take any advantage they can get."

"Even if it is an inhumane one?"

"What makes you think dungeon masters are human? Are you?"

"Well, I'm not exactly human but I'm still thinking like one."

"And why is that? Is it perhaps because you can return to human society whenever you want? You can't compare yourself to a bunch of people that spent years or even decades with a knife held to their throats. They were under the constant threat of being killed and their death would be a painful and permanent one. Some committed suicide but the ones that kept living have retained very little kindness towards anything remotely human in their hearts."

"So just because they have suffered in the past they are allowed to do whatever they want now?"

"No, this has nothing to do with being allowed to. I'm just telling you why they do it. Whether that is right or wrong you must decide for yourself. But no matter what you decide it will have little influence on what you do."

"Are you threatening me, Darwin!"

"I'm warning you. Do you think the ability to cheat death an unlimited amount of times comes for free? Did you never question why you had no skill regarding that ability? You may think you are free but the leverage they have over you is enormous. Especially you. Remember, they don't hold compassion towards humans."

"You mean my family?!!"

"I will do everything in my power to stop that from happening but yes, your family would probably be involved if you kept refusing."

Is this what despair feels like? I am forced to act against my good conscience to protect my family?

"Guy, don't look so negative. Look at it positively, you can still see your family and provide for them. I know this doesn't make it alright but beating yourself up over it won't improve the situation."

"Is there nothing I can do?"

Darwin visibly hesitates and looks around as if searching for something. I feel an air of omnipotence emerge around him and vanish just as quickly.

"There is one thing I can tell you. I don't know if it will bring you any solace but I'll tell you anyway. Your specific task is to lead a raid. If there are enemy forces present you are required to engage them but you can leave the villagers to the goblins. Also, since the goblins are your unit you can call them back if they chase someone.

"We want some survivors since that will tell their tale and dissuade new villagers from coming to the villages so no one can fault you for that. Every person that chooses to run isn't your responsibility. And another thing, if you can seize resources like food or good equipment you may give them priority and direct some of the goblins to accompany you to get them."

"So you are saying I should try to minimize casualties by focusing on other things."

"No! Since this is a first for us many dungeon masters will be watching. You can only shift priorities if the opportunity presents itself, never actively look for them."

Darwin seems very worried about all of this. Are those dungeon masters really that scary?

You too Navi? Did something happen in the past?