Goblin Kingdom

—Maybe he’s right. Maybe it’s really wrong for us to be content with goblins ruling over us.

Even if thing weren’t worded it as literal as that, the people would still end up wondering about the situation they’ve been placed into and start thinking. Among those people who’ve started thinking included even the governor-generals who should have been administrating the cities.

They have indeed submitted to the goblins once.

The powerful Red King led by Brandika unified them and after he was defeated by the Goblin King, the goblins came to rule over them.

But was that really correct?

Once that thought took root, it swirled about in the city along with the displeasure of the people, slowly dying the people in its colors beginning with the leaders. Esgare, who whispered to them such evil thoughts, could only stay in the shadow and never appear in the light.

To Pale, who held the flag of the Soar to Freedom (Elks Clan), she believed it was only a given that the goblins were helpless against him. This was a matter she had to take care of personally from both emotional and practical standpoint.

She left the schemes of the Holy Shushunu Kingdom to Gi Za, then sent Sophia, who has shown great success in backhanded matters, to the Labyrinth City-State of Tortoki.

The fact she was using her trump card right from the start showed how serious she was about crushing the remnants of the Red King.

“If you intend to block our path, then I will crush you as many times as I have to.”

Pale’s heroic resolve made even her ally, Sophia, feel a cold chill run up her back. Her eyes that sparkled like jewel held within them an emotionless light that shot through her. Just recalling it was enough to make her shiver.

“Umm, are you really coming with me?”

Sophia called out nervously to the person who was tasked to accompany her.

“Yeah… Shumea-neesan asked me, so it can’t be helped. Doesn’t matter even if it’s that Pale girl’s plan.”

Long black hair extending to her waist, Vine the Mad Blade shrug her shoulders and laughed from beside Sophia.

“I’ll bring some fairly decent guys along too, so just leave the bloody job to us.”

Vine laughed and lightheartedly patted Sophia’s head.

Sophia wasn’t sure what the reason was, but Vine was in a really good mood. As they merged with the Burning Bright Moons Clan group of 20 people, Sophia felt a different kind of fear from Vine.

Briefly put, their group looked and acted extremely bad. This was a clan who stood against the Red King after undertaking a dark hand-like job and was strong enough to defeat Shunrai. A combat group that was able to gather small clans with violence and money to attack Germion Kingdom.

If any merchant were to meet them on the road, they would surely mistake them for a group of bandits and flee as bare as the day they were born.

The one patting her head in such a good mood was none other than the clan leader, Vine, who brought that clan together with violence. If this woman felt like it, she could crush her head as easily as crushing as an egg, but it couldn’t be helped, so Sophia just let her do as she pleased.

Besides, it was true that there wasn’t anyone better suited than her to serve as her escort.

“So, what are we going to do? Want us to start killing people from one end to another?”

Vine violently blurted out of nowhere, causing Sophia’s eyes to open wide and look at her as if she were a demon.

“Eh?”

“Ha ha, I was joking.”

“…I have an idea. Please accompany me.”

“Sure thing.”

Vine faintly smiled wickedly like a snake. She seemed to be imagining the bloodshed to come.

“If you want to hide a tree, hide it in a forest. If you want to lead a group of rebels, do it from inside.”

“Sounds interesting.”

Through a series of fortunate coincidences, Sophia got it right on the mark. With Vine and the Burning Bright Moons clan, they were able to successfully get rid of the secret maneuverings of the Red King in Tortoki, even as they spread death and destruction.

By a stroke of good luck, they were also able to secure the intelligence agents of the Red King, and through Vine’s cruel methods, were able to make them spit out information on their companions, then defeat them one by one.

But Esgare didn’t just remain a spectator the whole time either.

The moment the intelligence agents sent to Tortoki were killed, he realized that their current methods would eventually lead to their demise. At this point, he could have chosen to return to the Holy Shushunu Kingdom, but the desire to see the fruits of his work won out.

The revolt in Pena. The state of affairs of the south that he was thoroughly aware of. The situation in the south, where Cell once led a search under Carlion’s behest, was good enough that he only needed a few corrections to make use of it.

The third-rate dark hands were to stand out and act as baits, while the first-rate dark hands were to hide in the shadows and gather in Pena.

As the month turned to the month of Boa and the year was coming to an end, the rebels simultaneously staged an uprising around Pena and Esgare’s plans came to fruit.