Chapter 92: Moving Forward
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 92: Moving Forward
When I stepped outside, I saw everyone’s faces. The goblin guarding the tent had clearly relayed my message to the entire clan. Goblins and Orcs were gathered before my tent, and the other executives, including Mev and Jung Hayeon, stood before them.
None of them looked pleased. It was to be expected. Hark and Gark, pillars of the clan alongside myself, had returned half-dead. This was the natural outcome.
Some stared at me with blazing eyes, while others looked on with sorrow. Just as I was about to speak, the crowd slowly parted, forming a path.
Of course, the path was not for me. I glanced to the side and saw Gark, who had lost an arm, approaching with a pale face. He must have somehow heard my call to gather the tribe, even though he should have been resting. Given their personalities, I had thought they might show up if they were conscious, but I never imagined he actually would. The fact that Hark was nowhere to be seen suggested his condition was even more critical. A surge of irritation rose in me as I watched Gark drag his obviously wounded body forward.
It wasn't that I had grown to dislike him. It was the opposite.
The surrounding goblins and orcs watched Gark with ambiguous expressions. His deeds were heroic, but defying the chieftain’s order was a grave sin. Some offered looks of support, others of contempt.
Gark received the gazes of every tribe member as he knelt before me.
“The price for disobeying an order is death!”
His powerful voice echoed through the settlement.
There was no way I could kill them. These warriors had saved my life. But the rules had to be upheld. Punishment was unavoidable. Biting my lip hard, I spoke to Gark.
“I trust you know your crime, Gark. And you must also know why I have gathered the tribe.”
Gark said nothing, merely staring at me with burning eyes. This loyal Orc had chosen to die by my hand, if he had to die at all. He offered no excuses. He didn't say it was for the chieftain’s sake, nor did he ask if I wasn't grateful that he had saved my life.
He simply stood there, dragging his exhausted body, waiting for me to take his head.
“Disobeying the chieftain’s order is a great sin.”
The tribe members nodded.
“However, all of this happened because of your inadequate chieftain. This is not the place for Gark to die. The price for his disobedience will be the arm he left behind. Once Gark’s wounds have healed, he will be imprisoned and denied food for fifty days. The same applies to Hark.”
Executing them for this would be a foolish choice. They may not be the sharpest, but they were pillars supporting the clan. I had no intention of giving them what they wanted.
“Furthermore, I strip Gark and Hark of their names. Gark shall be called ‘Half Blade,’ and Hark shall be called ‘Mirror Blade.’ It will be a very long time before they can reclaim their lost honor and names.”
A brief murmur rippled through the Orcs and goblins at my words. They seemed to think that taking their names was too cruel a punishment. Gark, however, immediately nodded his head.
It was a sign that he accepted his sin and would pay the price.
“I will surely atone for this unforgivable sin.”
With that, he slammed his forehead to the ground.
“For Blood Dagger.”
But I clenched my jaw and did not respond to his cry. Finding it difficult to look at him any longer, I gave a slight gesture. Soon, Gark, his face now bloodied, was helped away by the Goblin Three Sisters and disappeared to the rear.
Gark and Hark were dealt with. What remained was the matter of Mev and the goblins who had died. I slowly turned my gaze to Mev. She lowered her head, unable to meet my eyes. She was trembling slightly, a pitiful sight, but a mistake was a mistake.
As a chieftain, Mev should have stopped Gark and Hark and returned to the settlement. I was grateful for her concern for me, but that was a separate issue.
“The sin does not belong to Gark and Hark alone. Mev, as a chieftain, should have stopped them and returned. Failing to restrain them is also a clear sin.”
Mev, too, cautiously nodded. I began to think slowly about her. She was undoubtedly competent. She had a talent for archery and did well in her role of managing the female clan members. But she was soft-hearted. It was obvious that if I let today’s mistake slide, it would return as a great poison to the clan. Biting my lip, I voiced the thoughts I had settled on.
“Mev, like the two before her, will be imprisoned and denied food for fifty days. Additionally, I revoke Mev’s status as chieftain.”
“I will obey your command.”
Mev accepted it calmly, as if she had expected it. She did not look bitter. From her perspective, it seemed she was just happy that I had returned alive. Of course, I was grateful to her as well. Ignoring her words, I continued speaking.
It was about the new chieftain.
I had already decided who would be best suited for the role of the new chieftain responsible for the clan’s internal affairs. The Goblin Three Sisters had been dedicated for a long time, but they were not enough. They had relied heavily on Mev rather than acting independently, and they were difficult to control, so maintaining their current position was most appropriate.
The same went for Jung Hayeon. In her case, I felt the situation could become even more severe than with Mev. She was pathologically obsessed with me. I believed there was a high probability that if she had been in charge instead of Mev when this incident occurred, she would have led all our forces to rescue me. So, Jung Hayeon was also out.
Hakajin was already buried under an overwhelming workload. I thought he was capable enough to manage the female tribe members as well, but I didn't want to burden him any further.
That left one person.
Someone who could make sound judgments from a proper distance.
“I will bestow the position of the new chieftain upon Ragia.”
My voice rang out, and she nodded her head.
“I will obey your command.”
Ragia bowed her head toward me, showing her respect. She had done well so far, so I believed she would do well this time, too. Ragia was smart. She knew how to distinguish right from wrong from an appropriate distance. Ragia was far better suited for this position than Mev, who was swayed by her emotions and other factors. But it was also true that there was a risk. Of course, she no longer showed her past self and was obedient now, but just in case she harbored other thoughts, I looked at Ragia and spoke.
“Remember that day well.”
“How could I ever forget?”
After I finished speaking, everyone nodded. Mev, too, nodded at me, and unlike the injured Gark and Hark, I decided to carry out her punishment immediately. As if she understood my intent without me having to say it, Mev also moved from her spot.
After Mev disappeared from view, the atmosphere seemed to lighten somewhat. I wasn't personally satisfied, but the tribe members seemed to accept it. There was some murmuring in the case of Gark and Hark, but for Mev, the sentiment seemed to be that the punishment was neither too harsh nor too lenient.
All that remained were Kurajin, Gaon, and Najin.
I instinctively began searching for a particular goblin. A mother goblin, holding a small goblin tightly in her arms, was looking this way.
It was undoubtedly Nicole and his wife. I hadn't yet fully understood the Green Skin concept of family, but the fact that the father and mother were responsible for the child was no different here. From the mother goblin's perspective, she had lost her husband, and from Nicole's perspective, her father had vanished.
“Najin, Gaon, Kurajin.”
As I quietly called their names, the entire crowd seemed to flinch. The mother goblin, in particular, turned slightly pale. They, too, loved and cared for one another. I knew that just from seeing how Mev looked at me. Her husband's honor would be a crucial matter for her and her child's survival.
I recited their names once more.
“Najin, Gaon, Kurajin.”
“These are the ones who disobeyed my command, goblins who did not die with honor.”
“…”
“They are already dead. Their honor has fallen to the ground, and I have no intention of picking it up. That is how important it is to obey the chieftain’s word in our Blood Dagger Clan.”
The warriors nodded. Ragia and Hakajin did as well. Obeying the chieftain’s command was certainly important. The tribe members who had asked to join me could not be ignorant of this fact. Some nodded, while others sent glances that said my words were only right. The mother goblin, too, hugged Nicole tightly as she watched me. There was no resentment in her eyes. She, too, was accepting it.
I looked into the mother goblin’s eyes and bit my lip hard.
‘But I will remember their names.’
That’s what I had intended to say. But the words wouldn't come out. This would be enough. The fact that they died more honorably than anyone else was a truth that only I needed to know. Still, it was natural to feel heavy-hearted. In the end, I once again murmured their names softly. I looked directly into the mother goblin’s eyes and whispered, loud enough for everyone to hear my voice.
“Najin, Gaon, Kurajin.”
I thought that the quick-witted ones would understand why I was murmuring their names. I wanted them, too, to hold it within their hearts. The mother goblin had at first watched me with a pale expression, but as I continued to repeat their names, her expression gradually changed. Soon, her eyes reddened, as if she was trying desperately to hold back tears. She bit her lip hard with her own fangs. Seeing that, I knew.
‘It was conveyed.’
Words were not necessary. My meaning had been transmitted. What I saw in her eyes was not contempt for a loved one or blame for a husband who had lost his honor, but pride. Pride that though he died without honor, he died more honorably than anyone. Pride that she carried that man’s child in her arms. Pride that the husband she loved had died saving Blood Dagger’s life.
Finally, a tear streamed down the mother goblin’s face, and watching it fall, I closed my eyes.
“Chieftain Ragia, dismiss the tribe members and clear the area.”
“As you command.”
Just as I was about to re-enter my tent, their voices thundered out.
“For Blood Dagger!”
It was a cry I usually heard and dismissed without a second thought. But today, that voice sounded incredibly heavy.