Black Iron Magician

Chapter 54 Goblin

A green demi-human monster that is so short that it can be mistaken for a child, that is a goblin. They are weaker, dumber, and have a short life span than average humans. They are monsters that even a novice adventurer can defeat, but the only thing that can’t be underestimated is their fertility.

No matter how many they are hunted by adventurers, soldiers, and knights, they will never become extinct from all over the world, and the Adventurer Guild always has a cheap request for their subjugation as harmful monsters. Why don’t goblins disappear? Some scholars enthusiastically advocated the theory that goblins can reproduce even with the other races. However, when a tamer tried to confirm it with the goblin under his command, he was met with a pitying response that as if saying ‘what the hell are you talking about?’ In reality, there have been no reports of such damage, and this theory is quickly denied.

The safe theory that it is simply because they are born too many at once and their cycles are too fast is currently the most popular one. Some scholars have persisted in denying it, but it has been met with a very cold reception from those around them, especially from women and goblins.

Well, although goblins attract the attention of such a localized and limited group of scholars, they are just a pain in the ass for adventurers. It sounds good to say that they are easy to hunt, but even if you defeat them, there is no part of them that can be stripped off and used. The only way to get profit is to collect their ears as proof of subjugation. Moreover, the subjugation reward is very cheap, so taking the trouble to increase the luggage is questionable. If you’re a novice adventurer, it’s a good way to earn a little extra money, but as you become more proficient, the number of people who pick up the ears will decrease. You will be in their care when you are a novice, and when you don’t need the ears anymore, it means you have graduated from being a novice. There’s such a saying among adventurers.

Normally, novice adventurers learn this from senior adventurers, that goblins rarely have strong individuals. They are the ones that carry weapons or give instructions to other goblins. In many cases, even novices can deal with them if they fight with caution, but it is not uncommon for them to die if they are caught by surprise. However, defeating such goblins only changes the rewards slightly, which is one of the reasons why goblin hunting is unpopular.

These slightly stronger goblins, which look the same in appearance, are actually goblin leaders, the evolved form of goblins. The phenomenon of monsters evolving according to job level is not well known, but the reality is that level 1 is a goblin, level 2 is a goblin leader, and level 3 is a goblin commander.

Ordinary goblins are the so-called ‘small fry’ monsters that only attack with scratching or biting and often act alone. When they become Goblin Leaders, they begin to use swords and bows, perhaps due to their increased intelligence. When they become Goblin Commanders at level 3, they will be able to speak words, although imperfect, and command lower-ranked goblins to act as a group. However, since their appearance does not change at all as they evolve, the adventurers have no choice but to judge their strength by their behavior.

A clear change in appearance is the level 4 Goblin King. Its physical characteristics are the same as those of other goblins. However, it now wears a tattered red cloak and a crown, from who knows where it brought it from, on its head. In short, you’ll be able to identify them by their appearance. They will be able to speak a few words and will be easy to distinguish. Goblins have a short lifespan, and those who become kings are rare indeed. However, once a goblin becomes a king, it will reign as the king of goblins for a long time unless their nest is exterminated by someone. As a typical king, it’s a troublesome monster that has a few goblin commanders in its nest to form something like a small army. When it comes to the Goblin King, the danger of extermination will increase dramatically and a skilled adventurer party or the country’s knights will be dispatched.

However, there are clouds above clouds. Although almost not mentioned in history, it seems that a level 5 goblin, a Goblin Kaiser――

「――exists. Hey, Haruna, are you listening?」

「………」

Haruna and Chinatsu were looking at the monster picture book borrowed from Deris. It was a study that started with Chinatsu’s suggestion to learn the characteristics of the enemy before fighting, but Haruna had stopped moving from the middle of the study. However, it doesn’t seem that she is overworking her head and emitting black smoke.

「Finally, the day to see if my magic has surpassed Gobuo-kun’s magic has come… 」

It’s unusual for Haruna to be muttering something in an inaudible voice. However, Chinatsu has seen Haruna like this before. That was when she participated in a national kendo tournament for the first time. The opponent was overwhelmingly more experienced than Haruna, and Haruna, who was in the position of a challenger before the match, was in such a state. Quietly, but surely, she burned her fighting spirit and sharpened her nerves to the limit. By doing so, Haruna exerted her full strength during the match and achieved national domination. Haruna’s eyes are the same as when she was in the middle of the match, and Chinatsu is quite surprised.

(But, it was only at that time that Haruna was in this state before the match… What on earth is driving Haruna to that extent? Is there a sign of such a strong monster?)

The answer is the influence of Gobuo, a character who appears in the ‘The Basic of Magic Even Goblin Can Understands’ series of introductory books on magic for young children, but Chinatsu probably will never know it.

「Hey, you guys. Here, your grilled rabbit meats.」

When Chinatsu was thinking about it, Deris called out from behind. In both hands, he has plates with grilled meats on them. It seems that he brought their shares.

「Ah, Deris-san, thank you. Haruna―― it seems that she’s concentrating on something, so I’ll give it to her later.」

「Hm? What, Haru’s eyes are in battle mode, huh…. Oh well, just let Nell know how it tastes later. Her personality might be like that, but she will be pretty happy when she’s thanked or praised.」

‘Isn’t that because you are the one who praised her?’ Chinatsu thought so, but she didn’t say it. Even though she has been associating with them only for the past few days, she sensed that Nell likes Deris almost to the point of conviction.

(On the contrary, it’s so obvious that other people will understand it…. Yeah, it’s their problem, outsiders shouldn’t poke their noses in their problem. The two of them are much more mature than me after all.)

These two adults have already done it, but Chinatsu probably never have the chance to know about it.

「Wow, it’s delicious…! Just between you and me, I didn’t know Nell-shishō could cook. I thought that she was a sheltered lady and didn’t know how to cook at all.」

The outside is crispy and the inside is moderately heated, and the juices flow out when you bite into it. The person who cooked this meat with the perfect amount of heat is Nell, who is currently in charge of cooking the food in front of the iron plate. Chinatsu whispered so to Deris so that Nell didn’t hear it. Then, Deris spouted out for some reason when she said ‘sheltered lady’.

「L-Lady… pfft…! Well, when we were adventurers in the past, most of the cooking was done by Nell. Leave aside the usual time, she’s pretty good when cooking outdoors like this. Thanks to that, my cooking skills remain zero.」

「Zero, huh?」

「…… Ah! This is the scent of meat!」

When they were having such a rambling conversation, Haruna seemed to be tempted by the meat scent and came back to her senses. Deris gives the plate to such a glutton girl and slightly looks at the north.

It’s not long until the goblin horde arrives.