Chapter 121: The Plan
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 121: The Plan
After our talk, Goff and I took Ibar and Gurba out for something of a walk. Even Goff, who had claimed his wolf was arrogant, was silent now. Gurba was utterly devoted to Ibar. He had even brought her the meat of a magical beast without being asked.
Grrrrr.
As if telling her to try it, as if certain it would suit her tastes, he wagged his tail and offered the meat to Ibar. But after taking a single bite, Ibar simply kicked the offering away with her front paw. I never imagined Ibar would react like that.
Standing firm, she looked just like a queen. Gurba, who had been so majestic just moments before, now looked less like Ibar’s suitor and more like her servant.
“…”
And yet, for some reason, he seemed thrilled, panting as he ran off to fetch another piece of meat. The sight was almost heartbreaking. Goff and I found a suitable spot to sit and watch them as we slowly discussed the future.
It was only natural that Black Spear, who had recovered enough to move, would join us. I had sent a nearby goblin to ask him to come.
Of course, a discussion this important couldn't be settled between just the three of us; I knew we would have to hold a full tribal alliance meeting eventually. Still, I thought it wouldn't be a bad idea for the chieftains to talk things over first.
Storm Shadow had said we could stay as long as we liked, but we couldn't impose on his clan forever. To remain here was no different from not being independent at all. Having spent three years here, Black Spear knew this place far better than Goff or I did, so I was hoping he would take the lead on this matter. Fortunately, he seemed motivated, and it looked like he had already scouted some potential sites for our allied tribes to settle.
“Looks like you’re trying to pair up the wolves,” he remarked.
“That’s the idea. I don’t know if it’ll work out, though…”
It seemed he also found the dynamic between Ibar and Gurba quite amusing. After Black Spear arrived, we chatted idly for a bit.
Then, Goff, eager to plant a new flag as soon as possible, got straight to the point. “Hmph. I’m curious if there’s even a place for us to settle here… Black Spear.”
Black Spear nodded in understanding.
“Actually, I did have a place in mind, Goff.”
“Oh…”
“But I had to change the plan a little.”
“Just as I thought…”
Goff looked a bit more dejected than I felt. If it were just the Black Spear Clan and the Blood Dagger Clan, we could easily find a place to settle in this eastern swamp. There were surely abandoned settlements left behind by other Trolls, Ogres, and Goblins, and we could have repaired and used one without any issue.
But…
Living with the Goff Clan changed everything. Unlike Trolls, who could adapt well to the swamp ecosystem, massive creatures like Ogres had a surprisingly difficult time. It might not matter for a single Ogre, but the Goff Clan was composed almost entirely of Ogres and Half-Ogres. It was impossible that a place large enough to accommodate all of them existed here.
That wasn’t the only problem. An even bigger issue was the fact that the Blood Dagger Clan had also grown in number. Aside from human cities or Storm Shadow’s settlement, there was no space that could handle the sheer size of our allied tribes.
“Grrr… So it’s our Ogres that are the problem…”
“That’s not all, Goff… The Blood Dagger Clan’s increased size is also an issue.”
I knew it.
“Hnng…”
“To be blunt, I wouldn’t recommend building a settlement in the East at all. There are too many swamps, making it unsuitable for a large clan. It’s not that you couldn’t survive, but I doubt you’d want to live your lives constantly watching your step…”
Goff nodded but said nothing more.
We had decided to live here. I had expected it to be difficult, but the situation was more serious than I thought. If even Black Spear was saying this, then surviving here would be no easy feat.
I was starting to consider moving south, or even back west, when he spoke again.
“However, if you’re truly set on establishing a base here, there is one suitable location.”
Sitting down, Black Spear began to slowly sketch something in the dirt. No, it wasn’t a drawing, but a map. It seemed he was trying to give us a rough overview of the area. Curious, Goff leaned his massive frame forward. Once he finished, Black Spear began to speak, pointing to different spots with his black shortspear.
“This is where we are now. Storm Shadow’s settlement.”
“The human city they call Hadum is much farther north, and this is where we rescued the slaves. If we assume our allied tribes could handle the humans, I’d want to put down roots in the human settlement we conquered, but…”
“Impossible,” I cut in sharply.
I was certain that Hadum and the other small eastern cities would form a monster subjugation force, even if it was just for show. The same went for the numerous cities that had connections to the small city of Somorah.
In other words, we had provoked the wrath of scum. We had completely smashed their personal trash can. Those without any trash to throw away wouldn't care, but those with piles of it would naturally be sharpening their blades against us. Our current strength was by no means weak, but it was still not enough to fend off a human alliance.
“I thought as much.”
Neither Black Spear nor Goff tried to preach about honor here. No one present was that foolish. Thankfully, they understood the situation.
“Then the western part of the swamp is also out of the question,” Black Spear continued, “as is the northern human city, which has the largest population.”
“That leaves… the south and the east…” Goff mumbled.
“That’s right, Goff.”
“Hmm…”
“And of the two, the south is full of swamps, so it’s absolutely impossible for us to stay there.”
“So only the east is left.”
“Correct.”
I swallowed a dry lump in my throat. Goff didn’t seem to know, but Black Spear’s expression told me he did. I shouldn’t have known either, but having heard of it in my past, I couldn’t help but glance at Black Spear.
“It seems you’ve heard of it somewhere, Blood Dagger.”
“The Magical Beast of the East.”
As I spoke the words, Black Spear nodded. It was only natural, but the creatures that both our kind and humans called magical beasts also evolved. I wasn’t sure if a Giant Wolf should be called a magical beast, but just as they evolved, so did others.
I didn’t know if these creatures were native to this land or if they went through the same process as us, but one thing was certain: they, too, were growing stronger.
The Magical Beast of the East was a large-scale magical beast that had caused quite a stir two years before I died. I’d heard that the humans of the great eastern city of Hadum had hunted it down. The story was that they had prepared thoroughly, so there weren’t many casualties, but it had taken them a long time to finally succeed.
Of course, I didn’t believe the official report that there were few casualties during a large-scale magical beast hunt, but that was Hadum’s official stance.
While summoners here valued results, it was a different story for large guilds with much to lose. Hunting a large-scale magical beast like this required even more time and preparation than conquering a dungeon. The fact that it would take another five years from now for the beast to be killed meant it was undoubtedly a formidable opponent.
In short, the eastern part of the swamp was its territory. It was a rather… no, an extremely large creature, so its lair would certainly be a fine home for us.
“It’s not a bad idea, but I’m worried the casualties could be severe…”
His concern was justified. The moment I imagined Green Skins fighting a monster, a terrible image came to mind. These guys would surely charge forward all at once, shouting for honor… Mages, archers, it wouldn’t matter—they could all be melted by the first breath attack.
“The Magical Beast of the East… Sounds interesting,” Goff said.
“You think so?”
Black Spear looked worried, while Goff bared his fangs in anticipation.
Is it possible?
I couldn’t help but wonder. I had a rough idea of how to defeat it. In this world, ‘humans’ were inherently better suited for raids.
Warriors, priests, mages, archers, paladins, squires, rangers—countless classes moved as one team. It was a funny thought, but my experience with games back on Earth was a positive asset here.
In other words, they knew how to hunt large monsters. They practiced and worked hard at it. For some clans, hunting magical beasts was a matter of pride, a goal in itself. That’s how difficult it was. Which was why I had to hesitate. I was armed with theory, but I had no experience. A raid and a battle seemed similar, but they were entirely different concepts.
Is it possible…
After thinking it over, I concluded that it was impossible.
But that was only for now.
Our Green Skins might not know the concept, but I felt their potential was no less than that of humans.
The Ogres could play the role of warriors and tanks, drawing aggro. Our Blood Dagger Clan’s swordsmen could be the rogues or melee fighters, supporting the warriors and controlling the flow of battle by sowing chaos. For ranged attacks, we had Black Spear and Mev’s archers. As for the lack of healers… Baek Ahyeon could fill that role. We were desperately short on mages, but with Jung Hayeon and the shamans, we could somehow cobble together a lineup.
The more I thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
Comparing Goff to a human main tank was an insult to Goff. Of course, the warrior who tanked a large-scale magical beast might be stronger than Goff.
But Goff’s body was far better suited for protecting his party members. If a human with a physique like Goff’s suddenly appeared, they would have tried to nurture him by any means necessary, regardless of his potential.
And what about Black Spear? If he had enough ammunition, the black spears he threw were far more powerful than a volley of arrows from archers. There were even human clans that lugged around giant ballistae just to hunt large monsters. With Black Spear, we had no need for one.
Our advantage was that we had no fear of death. Our disadvantage was that we couldn’t execute plays with the same precision as humans. I turned to the deeply pondering Black Spear and Goff and spoke casually.
“It might be possible… though it seems we’ll need some preparation…”
A raid, fought in the body of a monster. Funnily enough, the one whose heart was pounding with excitement wasn’t Blood Dagger, but Kim Taesung.