After the lord appeared, several green-skinned goblins immediately struggled to carry a large, crude wooden chair, bringing it to the center of the clearing.
Thud!
After kicking away a green-skinned goblin that was too slow to move, the goblin lord slammed its butt down onto its exclusive throne.
“Gao!”
The goblin lord shouted and gestured lazily toward the food roasting over the bonfire.
Several green-skinned goblins immediately carried a large, half-raw hunk of roasted meat to the goblin lord.
“Ga—!”
The goblin lord licked its lips, drooling so heavily that spit splattered all over the green-skinned goblins carrying the meat.
Placing its stone axe beside its seat, the goblin lord grabbed the roasted meat with both hands. Ignoring the heat, it opened its massive mouth and took a large bite.
Crunch!
Crunching through the bone, it chewed it all up together in its mouth.
Crunch! Crunch...
In less than half a minute, a piece of roast meat as large as three green-skinned goblins combined had disappeared into its stomach.
While it was eating, two green-skinned goblins were already waiting nearby with a bowl the size of a basin. The bowl was filled with soup, where various pieces of meat and fruits floated.
As soon as it finished the meat, the goblin lord grabbed the soup bowl.
“Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!”
In just three gulps, the large basin of soup was gone.
“Ga—!”
Tossing the soup bowl aside, the goblin lord licked its lips in satisfaction and patted its belly. Only then did it let out a leisurely cry to the gathered goblins.
“Ga!”
Finally given permission, the crowd of goblins immediately rushed toward the food with impatient fervor, shoving and brawling along the way.
Some goblins had their teeth knocked out, while others were tripped and trampled underfoot by the rest of the pack.
Although the scene was utterly chaotic, a strict hierarchy still prevailed.
The goblin mages rushed to the very front, enjoying the best parts of the food.
The hobgoblins followed closely behind them. They wanted to step forward but didn't quite dare, only able to stand there drooling as they inhaled the aroma of the food.
Once the few goblin mages had eaten and drunk their fill, the hobgoblins instantly swarmed the area, scrambling for the remaining food.
After the hobgoblins gradually dispersed, the most numerous green-skinned goblins, who had been waiting eagerly for ages, were finally allowed to step forward.
Even though only scraps and cold leftovers remained by this point, it did nothing to deter the frenzied green-skinned goblins. They would beat each other bloody just over a bone with some scraps of meat left behind by a hobgoblin.
Instead of stopping the green-skinned goblins, the other higher-tier goblins watched them with great amusement.
The goblin lord, seated on its exclusive throne, found the spectacle especially entertaining, bursting into fits of laughter from time to time—“Gaha, gaha!”
“Gaji—?!”
Right then.
A cry of agony rang out from among the hobgoblins.
The surrounding goblins startled and immediately looked over.
There they saw the hobgoblin that had made the sound collapsed on the ground, clutching its stomach and groaning in pain.
Upon hearing this cry, the goblin lord, who was enjoying the entertainment, wore a look of displeasure.
“Ga!”
After roaring in that direction, it prepared to go back to watching the green-skinned goblins fight.
“Gaji! Gaji... ”
However, even after it gave the order, the hobgoblin still didn't stop groaning, which instantly enraged the goblin lord.
“Gao—!”
It stood up, snatched up its axe from beside its seat, and roared at the crowd.
The entire tribe fell silent instantly.
The green-skinned goblins, who had been locked in a fierce struggle for food, huddled down in terror, not daring to make a single sound.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The goblin lord marched over with heavy steps, carrying its axe toward that hobgoblin, kicking away another hobgoblin that stood too close along the way.
Seeing this, the goblins that had been crowding around the groaning hobgoblin immediately scattered, clearing the area.
The goblin lord arrived beside the hobgoblin, which was rolling on the ground clutching its stomach. Seeing its state, the lord couldn't help but feel a flicker of confusion, but it still let out a loud roar.
“Gao—!”
The hobgoblin tremblingly raised a finger to point at the cauldron not far away, then pointed back at its own stomach.
“Gaji, gaji... ”
It desperately tried to explain.
But this only left the goblin lord more perplexed, and its inability to understand the situation fueled its anger further.
“Gao—!”
To a goblin lord, there was no need to think about things it couldn't understand.
Thud!
It kicked the belly-clutching hobgoblin away, then turned to bark orders at a few other hobgoblins.
“Ga—!”
Several hobgoblins scrambled over, picked up the unconscious hobgoblin, carried it off to one of the buildings, and locked it away.
Watching the hobgoblin being carried away, the goblin lord cooled down slightly, but it had lost all interest in watching the show.
It turned around and walked back toward its house.
Catching sight of the green-skinned goblins still lingering around the cauldron out of the corner of its eye, it suddenly let out another furious roar.
“Ga—!”
The green-skinned goblins shrank back, looking at the food beside them with longing.
“Ga—!!”
But as the goblin lord let out an even louder roar, the green-skinned goblins immediately fled in all directions.
As they scattered, many of the green-skinned goblins cast hateful glares toward the building where the hobgoblin was locked up. At least half of them hadn't received a single bite of food.
In their minds, this was entirely that hobgoblin's fault. Although they were used to going hungry, if it hadn't ruined things by getting a stomachache now, they wouldn't have been left without even a single mouthful.
After the goblins dispersed.
From a tree just outside the tribe, a sigh drifted through the air.
“I guess plans really can't keep up with changes...”
According to Shulim's original thoughts, if she was going to poison them, it would be best to find something that could kill them outright or knock them unconscious. Unfortunately, no such herbs could be found nearby.
Fortunately, she did manage to find an herb that caused severe diarrhea after ingestion. Naturally, this herb was just as effective on many other creatures, including goblins.
To mask the rather pungent odor of the herb, Shulim had deliberately mixed in several other herbs and crushed them all together.
After squeezing the mixed herbs to extract the juice, she had coated it over the food stored by the goblins.
Seeing the goblins suddenly gather to eat, especially when they boiled the food into a soup, Shulim had secretly rejoiced. This stomach-ruining herb worked even better when mixed into liquid, and heating it made the scent even less noticeable.
But she hadn't expected that a goblin would sneak food early, causing the effects to kick in for that one first. Luckily, the goblin lord's limited intellect kept it from realizing this was a poisoning. However, because of this goblin's disruption, at least half of the green-skinned goblins hadn't eaten the poisoned food.
This made the situation rather delicate.
Just how much of an impact could these low-tier goblins make when the high-tier ones were all poisoned?
She could only take things one step at a time.
...
A goblin tribe's mealtime was dictated entirely by when the lord woke up, so it was still broad daylight. Although the green-skinned goblins hadn't gotten their meal, their workload was not reduced in the slightest.
Sure enough, under the roaring commands of several hobgoblins, a group of listless green-skinned goblins hung their heads, carrying crude wooden clubs as they prepared to head out for a hunt.
“Gaji—! Ga—ji?!”
While one of the hobgoblins was shouting at the green-skinned goblins, its face suddenly turned pale, and it collapsed to the ground clutching its stomach.
“Gaji?! Gaji?!”
The hobgoblin rolled and writhed on the ground in intense pain, holding its belly.
The other goblins exchanged bewildered looks, unsure of what was happening. A few goblins felt a sense of déjà vu, but before they could speak up and warn the others—
“Gaji?!”
Another hobgoblin collapsed, clutching its stomach.
And then a third, a fourth...
Within a remarkably short span of time, a large portion of the entire goblin tribe collapsed, all lying on the ground howling in pain.
“Gao—!!?”
The goblin lord, who had just been about to drift back to sleep, was so infuriated by the racket outside that it kicked its door open and rushed out with its stone axe in hand.
Only to be met with the sight of its subjects collapsed all over the place, leaving it rooted to the spot in sheer disbelief.
“Gao?”
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