บท 9: A Quick Tour
Lance woke to the sound of chatter outside his tent, a rough yet functional structure hastily constructed for him throughout the previous day after his appointment as leader. The morning light filtered through the gaps in the patched leather walls, casting faint rays onto the dirt floor. He stretched, groaning softly as the stiffness of the past days caught up with him.
'Man, I'm not used to sleeping on hard floor at all. I don't feel the least relaxed.'
On the positive side, for the first time since arriving in this world, he wasn't waking up to panic or battle.
The scent of roasting meat wafted through the air, making Lance's stomach rumble. He hadn't eaten properly in days, surviving mostly on scraps and adrenaline, mostly because he couldn't eat the meat they served him as it wasn't properly cooked. With a sigh, he stepped outside, his eyes adjusting to the bright light.
The camp was alive with activity. Goblins moved about with a mix of purpose and disarray, their voices carrying over the rustle of leaves and the crackle of cooking fires. It was a chaotic yet oddly comforting scene, there was no promise of battle, at least yet.
Lia was the first to greet him, her sharp yellow eyes gleaming as she approached. "You're up. Good. Thought we'd have to drag you out."
"Haha, just getting used to this new role," Lance said dryly, scratching the back of his neck.
"Then you'd better start learning fast," Lia replied, her tone blunt but not unkind. "You can't lead us if you don't understand us, right?."
"Then I'll leave that in your hands," Lance said, meeting her gaze.
Lia smirked. "Fair enough. Come on, I'll show you around." She said.
The day began with a tour of the camp, though Lance quickly realized it wasn't the kind of orderly structure of arrangement he'd expected. Though he had done quite the study of the goblin camp already, it wasn't from this perspective, as he was fully focused on how to boast defence and improve their attack. Even then, since he had already gone through the camp before, not much seemed new to him.
The goblins lived in clusters, their homes made of scavenged materials and wooden constructs, though the sophistication of these structures left much to be desired. Apart from the tree branches and occasional logs, they also utilized, animal hides, and scraps of cloths.
"What's the first thing I need to know?" Lance asked as they walked.
"Survival," Lia said simply. "That's what it all comes down to. Food, water, shelter—we fight for it every day. Without it, we die. It's that simple."
'Thought as much… nothing changes, huh?' He thought to himself as he watched two young goblins share a small piece of dried meat.
Lance frowned. "You've been struggling with food…"
Lia's jaw tightened. "We always struggle. Hunting's dangerous, and the forest doesn't always provide. We eat what we can, when we can."
As they passed a group of goblins roasting a scrawny rabbit over an open flame, Lance's stomach twisted. The portions were pitiful, barely enough to feed one person, let alone an entire tribe. How could they have ever won against their bigger foes with such weak bodies?
For a moment, Lance realized that he truly had saved the goblins, because without him, they stood no chance against the male goblins.
"Why don't you farm?" Lance asked.
Lia gave him a sharp look. "Do we look like farmers to you? We move when we have to, fight when we must. Farming's for people who can afford to sit still."
'Babaric!'
"Mind I ask, why haven't I seen any male goblins around the camp? Even the young ones are all female." It was a question that had been on his mind ever since.
In a flat tone, Lia answered him, "some died a while back, some ran away, this is the situation we found ourselves in, we've been living like this ever since."
Lance couldn't help but think how far back this 'a while back' was as he listened.
The conversation shifted as they moved deeper into the camp. Lance noticed the goblins' movements were agile but tense, their eyes darting constantly to their surroundings. Even here, within their own territory, they never seemed to relax. Apart from enemies like the goblins from earlier, it seemed even the forest itself was a threat. Then again…
"You're isolated," Lance said. "You don't interact with other tribes?"
"Other tribes don't trust us," Lia said bluntly. "And we don't trust them. Goblins fight for what they need, and alliances are rare. We're not like humans or elves. We don't have kingdoms or councils to protect us."
Lance nodded slowly, his mind racing. Their isolation explained a lot, their limited resources, their vulnerability to attacks, their desperation. There was a lot of work for him to be done.
Lance was then led to a clearing where a group of goblins practiced sparring with crude weapons—spears, daggers, and bows made from scavenged materials. Their movements were fast but lacked adequate precision, their small frames darting almost like shadows as they attacked and dodged.
"They're good," Lance admitted, watching as one goblin expertly disarmed her opponent with a swift, twisting motion.
"They better be," Lia said.
There were barely that much training, at most, six of them.
"Elder… Chief…" Rikka greeted, sounding more flat with the second word.
"Rikka, why don't you spar with the chief a little, go easy on him." Lia said with a faint smile.
"Gladly." Rikka responded, grabbing a nearby wooded spear.
She tossed him a wooden spear, her smirk widening a little. "Show me what you've got, chief..."
Lance groaned. "You're kidding, right?"
"Not a chance."
…
Well, the sparring match was over quickly, and certainly not in Lance's favour.
He barely lasted thirty seconds against Rikka. She danced around him with ease, her strikes landing with painful precision. Lance could swear that she was adding more strength in her attacks than necessary. He really couldn't tell what he had done to this particular goblin to be treated so harshly.
"Pathetic," she teased under her breath, but just enough for Lance to hear as he stumbled back, gasping for breath.
"Alright, I get it," Lance wheezed, leaning on the spear for support. "I'm not a fighter."
"No, you're not," Lia said, her tone more thoughtful than mocking. "But you don't need to be. That's why you have us."
"Hmph, a powerful leader is always better. If Rynne was around, you'd be eating dirt by now."
"And who's Rynne?" Lance questioned.
'You've met her before, she's one of the elders, I'm sure you two will meet each other formally soon.
As the day wore on, Lance continued to learn little things.
If there was one thing that struck him, it was the fact that these creatures didn't dwell on the past or dream of the future, they simply lived in the moment, focused entirely on what it took to stay alive. It was such a simple way of life that worked, but Lance was looking to change that very soon. If he was going to become their leader and survive in a cruel world, it wouldn't be as just some tribe's chief.
By nightfall, Lance was exhausted but strangely content. He sat with Lia by the central fire, watching the flames dance in the cool evening air.
"You've worked a lot today," Lia said, her voice softer than usual.
"I have," Lance admitted.
Lia studied him for a moment, her sharp features illuminated by the firelight. "You're not what I expected, human. But maybe that's a good thing."
Lance smiled faintly. "I'll take that as a compliment."
She smirked. "Don't let it go to your head."
They continued talking for a while before Lia moved to her tent to perform some urgent business.
As the fire crackled and the stars appeared overhead, Lance felt a strange sense of belonging. This world was harsh and unforgiving, but for the first time, he didn't feel like an outsider. Whether he was slowly turning into a goblin or not, there was no guarantee, but for the moment, he was contempt.
He did think of going back to earth, but he had already died there, and with no family or friends, he wasn't sure how the hospital took care of his body. In the end, he had nothing to return to on earth, and here in this world, he had nowhere to go. Perhaps, that was the reason why he felt so much at home in the goblin tribe than normal.
'If this is a fantasy world, perhaps, perhaps I can even gain powerful world ending magical powers too, right?'
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