Published at 25th of March 2019 11:12 pm

Chapter 2 : Day 11 to Day 20

Day 11

The result of today’s hunt was that we only caught one species of prey, the seven colored bat, but we caught 30 of them.

No, it’s just that I discovered a cave while taking a walk today, and when I entered, wondering what could be inside, I found a gloomy open space, where the ceiling was densely packed with these guys...

Yeah, I was really saved by the abilities 【Detect Presence】 and 【Snake’s Evil Eye】 that I obtained from eating a night viper.

If I hadn’t been able to predict the flock’s movements by using 【Detect Presence】 and if I hadn’t restricted those rainbow bats’ mobility by using 【Snake’s Evil Eye】, leaving me aside, I wouldn’t have been able to command Gobukichi-kun or Gobumi-chan in time, which would’ve left either one of them dead.

No, really, even if they are lower class enemies, them being ten times higher in number left me preparing for my death. I recognized once more that battles depend on bulk numbers.

Well, anyway, the three of us survived without suffering any major injuries, like losing limbs.

We have countless small injuries, like cuts, but because Gobumi-chan and I had new defensive items and Gobukichi-kun had a sturdy shield, we were able to survive.

Seriously, I realized how important upgrading your armor really is.

Anyway, leaving the tiresome stories aside, even though the majority were able to escape, we obtained the wings and fangs of the rainbow bats by dissecting them and ate the remaining meat.

Yeah, this feeling of the meat melting away in my mouth, it really is delicious.

We were completely full by the time we finished munching on ten rainbow bats each.

【Ability 【Echolocation】 Learned.】

【Ability 【Pump up】 Learned.】

【Ability 【Vampirephilia】 Learned.】

As a result, I obtained three abilities. Well, of course you’ll get your hands on some if you ate this many.

Also, it seems that these are all the abilities I can acquire from rainbow bats, so even if I eat more, it will only strengthen my body and the abilities, as well as filling my belly.

The improvement rate from eating rainbow bats is bad, since they are weak, so I don’t think I will be driven by a necessity to eat them from now on. Although, I will eat them if I want to since they’re so delicious.

That aside, I’m really glad we were able to find the nest at this stage. All of these abilities seem to be useful.

For example, 【Echolocation】, an ability good for grasping the terrain and moving objects in my surroundings outside of my vision, will be a useful countermeasure against surprise attacks.

In this harsh world filled with competition to survive, I’m expecting that this ability will be a great help.

Day 12

As usual, I set out in order to go hunt for food.

I was able to successfully hunt horn rabbits, night vipers and armored racoons today as well, and since the sun had set, I started heading back to the cave.

Unlike humans, goblins are equipped with 【Dark Eye】 by default, so the darkness isn’t really much trouble.

So, even if the darkness made it a bit hard to see, we could continue hunting if we wanted to. It’s just that night is the time when species that are more brutal and stronger than goblins are active, so it’s kinda dangerous.

You see, goblins are basically the weak guys.

While the “Red Bear (tentative)”, which resembled a red-haired sun bear, lead the list, there were also “Triple Horn Horses (tentative)”, which are like horses that are covered with scales and have three horns aligned vertically on their forehead, “Demon Spiders (tentative)”, whose main characteristics are the yellow lines engraved in their 60cm shell, which must be harder than steel, and “Green Slimes (tentative)”, which may seem to be small fry like goblins, but probably have an ability like 【Physical Damage Nullification】. So yeah, there was no way I could win against these.

I don’t feel like I could win at all.

There’s a higher probability that I’ll just be killed off.

The effects of my level of poison will probably just be nullified after a short while. It’s just that dangerous guys like those start moving around at night.

Well, that is the reason why I go home without wandering around at night.

And so, back at the cave -- It seems that it is located in a pretty secure place -- I was tired, so I made preparations for tomorrow and slept.

And then, I was attacked in my sleep.

Thanks to 【Detect Presence】 being activated continuously, even though I was attacked in my sleep, I was somehow able to dodge the attack, so I wasn’t injured, but the real problem was my opponents.

It was because the main culprits were goblins from the same age group as me.

There were six goblins who were slightly intelligent and had recently started copying us by also equipping sticks.

I didn’t miss the opening they left as they stood in shock, seeing that their surprise attack had failed -- No, there’s no room for mercy in the wilderness when you get attacked by surprise in your sleep by someone with a stick, even if it’s family --, and I grabbed my favorite horn, which I always keep besides me when I sleep, in one hand to launch a counter attack.

As for the result, naturally, I beat them at their own game.

In the process, I messed up the mixture of the poison that was dripping from the horn, created with the 【Venom】 ability, and accidentally killed one of the goblins, but it can’t be helped.

Since the fault lies on their side, it can’t be helped.

I successfully robbed the others of their movements by creating a paralysis poison, and after beating them up to within an inch of their lives with their sticks, like with Gobukichi-kun the other day, I let them roll around there.

I can ask them for their reason tomorrow, and since the poison I injected isn’t lethal, they should get better by morning if left alone.

Besides, it seems that, since goblins are wild creatures, their self-healing ability is rather high.

It was too late for one goblin, but, I repeat, it just can’t be helped.

Because of the commotion, the goblins who were sleeping soundly began waking up, and it goes without saying that the whole cave soon became noisy.

Although I expected some comments, Gobujii and the goblins (elderly colleagues) said that it’s survival of the fittest, so they didn’t have anything to say in particular.

They only gazed at the corpse with slight pity in their eyes.

I thought that there would be some kind of punishment inflicted on me for killing a tribe member, but I’m grateful that I’m without blame.

But, Gobumi-chan wasn’t pleased at all with the results and it was frightening, to say the least.

No no, the goblin’s skeletal structure doesn’t allow the arm to bend that way, it’s gonna break.

The neck can’t turn any further than that, okay? It’s going to tear.

I soothed Gobumi-chan while restraining her body from behind. It’s no laughing matter that the part of this evening that consumed the most energy was saving the goblins that attacked me.

Oh yeah, by the way, Gobukichi-kun was sleeping soundly the whole time.

No, as they say, a sleeping child grows, and in fact, he had the biggest physique within our age group.

He must be around 10cm taller than I am.

Since I can depend on him being in the front lines, let’s just say that the reason he didn’t wake up, despite this uproar, was due to his thick nerves.

Besides, in my opinion, I can’t say that I would welcome one more rampaging goblin.

After all this, I managed to calm down the agitated Gobumi-chan.

By secreting a regulated, mild sleeping poison from my fingernails, I made Gobumi-chan lose consciousness and carried her to her bed.

After that, since it didn’t feel nice to leave a blood soaked corpse next to my sleeping place, or rather since it would smell bad, I carried it outside.

Since I could squeeze out double my usual strength by using the ability 【Pump Up】that I obtained yesterday from the rainbow bats, I managed to carry a body with a similar size to mine rather easily.

Gobuji told me that other monsters would come to eat the body if I just put it somewhat far away from the cave, so I should run away quickly after I put it down.

However after carrying it for a bit, I hid and tried eating it.

It was because I was curious.

My impression was, yeah, it was neither pleasant nor unappetising.

For the first time since I gained this body, I didn’t think something tasted good.

I tilted my head slightly at the thought.

Thinking one arm should be enough, I placed the body as planned.

Well, because of all that, I’m really tired so I’ll sleep now.

Day 13

Today, while exploring the mountain that was located a bit deeper in the woods, I discovered a humanoid monster with a pig’s face carrying a pickaxe.

It had brown skin and, despite its belly poking out, it had a body that was trained just enough that you could make out its muscle lines.

Besides that, the clothes it was wearing were slightly superior to those of the goblins, with both a top and a bottom piece.

That irritated me a bit.

A goblin's initial clothing is just a dirty old loincloth, you know.

And hey, I wish it would do something about the precious article dangling from its crotch, which is so big that it pokes out slightly from its clothes.

It makes you want to chop it off, really.

I’m not too sure, but the monster we discovered is probably an 【Orc】, which are just as famous as goblins.

Unlike goblins, which have the physique of young elementary school kids, the orc’s height was about 170cm. No, it may be even more than that. Seriously, looking at them from my current body, they look ginormous.

There’s probably at least a 40 to 50 cm difference between us.

After observing it for a while, I concluded that, if I were to face the orc we had discovered head on in a one-on-one battle, there was a high probability that I would win.

However, the problem lied in numbers.

Orcs, as a race, seem to be stronger than goblins and our physiques are very different.

Even though I may win in a one-on-one fight, if we are drawn into the mayhem of a group battle, I probably won’t be able to protect Gobukichi-kun and Gobumi-chan.

Besides, if our numbers are too different, even I wouldn’t know what to do.

I also cannot ignore the possibility of us not being able to escape.

With that being said, the one we found was on its own, so it probably got lost.

But just to be safe, I looked around us by using 【Thermography】 -- if I look into the sun with this during the day, I will go blind so I need to be careful. It’s troublesome that I have to be so delicate with its use while the sun is out -- and in addition, I thoroughly searched for enemies with 【Echolocation】.

Seeing that this resulted in no other enemies being found, I decided to attack.

First, we took some distance and hid in a thicket, where I had Gobumi-chan fire a small stone soaked with poison with her staff sling, aiming for the orc’s eyeball. It seems that her talent must’ve bloomed recently, because the stone flew straight towards its target, crushed the eyeball, and let the venom seep into the enemy successfully.

Since we would have trouble handling a rock coated with a lethal poison that could kill you instantly, and since I haven’t reached a level where I could create such a poison in the first place, it wasn’t not like the fight was already finished, but when a creature suddenly loses its sight while simultaneously feeling a sharp pain, there was no way it could keep its calm.

After that, Gobukichi-kun, whose timing I matched up, went charging in and swung his thick club was at full strength, directly into the orc’s knees. It made a dull sound, the knee was bent at an angle that would normally be impossible.

The orc’s ugly face turned even uglier, and it rolled around on the floor while screaming.

At this point, probably because I neglected training his intelligence and cognitive abilities and made him hunt with a style that was focused on attack and defensive power, it became clear that Gobukichi-kun was capable of crushing flesh and pulverizing bones on an orc’s level.

Gobukichi-kun. You’re a guy who shows results that surpass my expectations.

Although you’re an idiot (a compliment).

After that, with my leg muscles strengthened with 【Pump Up】, I held the orc, which was still writhing on the ground, still by stepping on his back and stabbed him with two horns, right in the area where a human’s kidneys would be.

The orc took a deep breath, preparing to raise its voice.

But, before the orc could cry out, Gobukichi-kun’s club was swung down at its head and, although it didn’t go as far as crushing it, there was still an unpleasant sound.

Even after that, the club was swung down time after time and became stained with the orc’s fresh blood.

The orc wasn’t even allowed to scream.

As for me, I stirred up its innards while secreting a muscle relaxant poison from the tips of the horns. Then I pulled out the horns and kept stabbing the orc until it died.

And, just like that, our first orc-hunt ended in a success.

We ate it after that, of course.

Both arms and the left leg for Gobumi-chan, the lower back and below was for Gobukichi-kun, and rest was for me.

As for the taste, it tasted like pig. High grade pork? Maybe.

For the time being, orcs are delicious. Pigs are so delicious.

【Ability【Libido】Learned】

【Ability【Orc Language】Learned】

【Ability【Appraisal】Learned】

And so I obtained these.

Well, let’s see, leaving 【Libido】 aside, which will surely be super useful depending on the time and “opponent”, it’s really fortunate that I was able to learn 【Orc language】 and 【Appraisal】.

This is because if abilities like 【Orc Language】 existed and I was able to use it to talk with orcs, it meant that I could also learn the human language and others once I obtained a similar ability.

As for 【Appraisal】, it seems to be dependent on the level, but when I look at objects, I can learn their (unique) attributes.

I tried using it on a tree nut that was lying around and I was surprised to find that it showed me whether it was poisonous or not.

Yeah, it seems that I obtained something really useful.

No really, it was fortunate that I was able to eat an orc at this stage.

Although it remains a mystery as to why they would have such a useful ability like 【Appraisal】.

Oh right, naturally, I collected the pickaxe the orc was carrying.

Because I might be able to use it for something.

After that, we hunted more armored racoons, night vipers and horn rabbits than usual and started heading back to the cave once the sun began setting.

I was able to finish my preparations without spending too much time, since I’m so used to butchering now that I could do it with my eyes closed. Instead of splitting today’s spoils amongst the three of us, I gave it to those who got so hungry over the last few days that they couldn’t go outside anymore.

No, you see, the big reason I was attacked yesterday by goblins from my generation was because of food.

Leaving the culprits aside, the goblins of my generation --looking at the genders, there were more females than males-- who lacked strength and intelligence couldn’t show results, despite moving around and looking for food, and so they hadn’t eaten anything proper in days, which was why the culprit goblins wanted to help them.

However, they could only gather enough food for themselves, so they couldn’t really support the others.

That’s why, seeing that I was bringing back the most substantial amount of food, they schemed to beat me up, make me submit to them and force me to get them food. They must have thought that it would work since they had gathered quite a number.

They’re so simple, really.

I could’ve just laughed and brushed it off, but it would be troublesome if something like this were to happen again in the future, and I thought that it wouldn’t be bad to have them indebted to me, which was why I tried feeding them.

No, well, I really just wanted to say who cares about those who can’t even get their own food -- I heard this from Gobuji afterwards, but it seems that there are evil guys like these in every generation. It seems that the majority of them have already died though--, but I just felt so ashamed of my fellow tribe-mates.

This is the first and last act of benevolence.

And well, they expressed their gratitude.

They thanked me while shedding tears.

I just told them that I don't need things like that and that they should pay me back the prey that they ate.

For now I gave a lecture to these miserable fellows on how to hunt horn rabbits.

I advised them to form groups and told them to crush its backbone by putting their entire weight on their heels, after sealing its movements by piercing it with horns tied to sticks.

It’s simple, but I judged that this should be enough.

For the time being, I told them to try it in practice tomorrow and, if they managed to catch anything, it didn’t matter when, so bring it back to me to pay me back for what you ate today.

I probably let them eat meat for the first time in their lives.

And I taught them what you could call the basics for hunting.

If they were to pay me back with malice after I’ve shown them this much good will, I will, at that time, use them as disposable pawns without any hesitation.

To be specific, as bait for a trap in a situation where you couldn’t escape without any casualties.

Those are my intentions, so I plan on waiting without any expectations.

Also, the five culprits are already my manservants.

They follow my orders with absolute obedience, of course, but they also complete their daily chores.

Today’s quota of five horn rabbits vanished after being distributed to the starving goblins.

You can really be thankful for nature’s law of the survival of the fittest as long as you’re on the winning side.

Since I was tired after distributing the food, I laid down in my bed, which was now slightly more comfortable thanks to the rainbow bat wings, and closed my eyelids.

Drowsiness came immediately.

【Your level has exceeded the minimum value. Because the special requirements ≪Devastative Activity≫ ≪Unique Action≫ are met, you can 【Rank Up】 to a 【Hobgoblin Subspecies Variant】. Would you like to 【Rank up】? ≪YES≫ ≪NO≫】

I had a feeling that some text like this appeared in my head, but because I was so sleepy, I selected ≪YES≫ for the time being and fell asleep.

【Goburou obtained 【Divine Protection】 from the great god of ≪Demise and Origin≫】

Day 14

When I woke up, my body had changed so much that it couldn't compare to how it was before I went to sleep.

The changes to my body shocked me, I thought hard about what I heard yesterday before I went to bed. I see, so this is a Rank Up, huh. The mysteries of this world make me shudder.

No, no, from my own experience I can understand however, the natural laws of this world are so amazing that it's beyond scary.

After killing and eating the Orc yesterday, in one night I went from the physical body of a 7-9 year old, to the size of a medium-sized human. My physical strength, eyesight, and hearing had increased dramatically, even the abilities I had gained before yesterday had also become more powerful, you see?

This is scary. Even though my body had grown a ridiculous amount, I didn't feel any sense of discomfort at all from my new form. Even though such a huge change should've made me go insane, that didn't happen in the least.

Even though my body had grown so much, I didn't feel any muscle pains from it at all, instead, I felt overflowing power that was incomparable to before, like a temporary feeling of omnipotence. Freaky, right? Seriously.

Now, if I was an ordinary guy I would've probably be so happy that I would do stupid things until the feeling passed, however, the reality is that I wasn't even close to being as powerful as I felt, and therein lies a trap.

That's why the rules of this world are scary.

Now, that aside.

It was interesting to watch Gobukichi, who had grown bigger as well, just stand there with a confused look.

It seems that he also passed over level 100 after the battle with the Orc yesterday, causing him to undergo a Rank Up. However unlike mine, his skin didn't turn black. In fact, I couldn't see any difference in his skin colour at all, he was still the same old green.

Well, let's put that aside as well.

What interested me the most was his face.

He no longer looked like an ugly Goblin like he had used to be. His naive look, in some aspects held some attractiveness. His ears were still pointed, and his nose looked somewhat hooked. Nevertheless he looked a lot like a human. Having green skin might not be very human-like, nonetheless his looks were approaching to that of a one.

Then, what about me? Wondering this, I checked the obsidian knife for my reflection.

What I saw was, with black skin, my face from when I was young before I reincarnated.

…Yeah, as one would expect I was completely stunned until it settled in.

For now, I went to the wall close by our sleeping place, grabbed a caterpillar-like mystery bug, and started munching on it from the head.

After I had calmed down, I grabbed Gobukichi and went to look for the Goblin Elder.

That's because if I didn't make use of the Goblin Elder at times like this, his existence wouldn't have any point at all.

Just in case, because it felt risky, I wouldn't mention the [End and Origin]-ruling [Divine protection of the Great God] that I also received.

What I learnt was:

Upon turning into a Hobgoblin, my body and appearance became closer to a human. The reason for this is unknown. It's one of the mysteries of the world. Apparently because of the hobgoblin's human-like appearance, they could even live in human towns. However, there is a long past of Goblin slavery, and most of those coexisting with humans are still slaves. Those with good looks have become sex slaves for human perverts.

The difference between Gobukichi's and my skin color is because I am of a subspecies. Subspecies are generally stronger and have special abilities when compared to the standard one. Unless special conditions are cleared you can't become a subspecies, which is why they're rarely seen, so apparently I'm kind of unusual.

Furthermore, my skin color is black. Black is the symbolic color of the oldest god of the world, the one who controls the beginning and the end of something-something. Even among the subspecies mine is the absolute rarest while being the strongest, and with studying, they're capable of learning the strongest magic possible.

Also, to the believers of this god, I'm somewhat like a living idol, an object of worship. If that's not the case, then parts of my body are thought to be materials used in rituals to communicate with the god, so I have to be careful when it's late in towns and stuff. Religion is scary no matter what world you're in.

How should I put it, becoming a Hobgoblin when not even a month had passed is supposedly very strange in the first place. The old man who's still a Goblin said so, so it's probably true. By the way, of the Goblins who left to work away from home, (apparently exactly 40 Goblins), only 3 had turned into Hobgoblins.

Also, because Gobukichi and I had become Hobgoblins before we left the cave, we were allowed to freely use the human women in the cave as we'd like. We also received the right to take things from the warehouse, and use them however we want.

Oh-. Is that so-?

…Yes, because he was kind of long-winded, I ignored most of what he said by repeating those those words and pretending to listen. Particularly around point 3, and the reason for that is obvious. Like I said before, no matter what world one is in, religion is scary. Even more so now that I've obtained the, and [Divine protection of the Great God] characteristics with my Rank Up. It makes me think that it'll probably turn into more trouble than it's worth. I thought that this was something I should hide it as long as possible.

As expected, we didn't even consider going hunting today. I practiced martial arts together with Gobukichi in order for us to accustom ourselves to our new bodies, the sparring was especially intense. Gobukichi's power was too much for him to know how to utilize it, making him quite warlike.

Though I, who has had an interest in many different forms of martial arts never lost, I could conclude that Gobukichi's power was at least somewhat stronger than how he was before. As expected, it seems like his abilities are specialized in being the vanguard.

He wasn't very intelligent or quick, but his offensive and defensive power had increased tremendously, making him a powerful tank and damage dealer, a hybrid character.

Once we concluded our martial arts practice, the afternoon was dedicated to replacing our now too small old armor.

Since I've grown, the horn and obsidian knife I've been using have become too small for me to handle effectively. However I'll just have to bear with it today, my venom by itself is an adequate weapon, so I can overcome this handicap for now.

That's why today the plan is to use the stockpiled materials from the Armored Tanukis, Night Vipers and various other monsters to create new armor.

We used the armored shell from the Armored Tanukis, and the snakeskin from the Night Vipers, to create new equipment. I was satisfied with the results, the armor we created was light, flexible, and quite robust.

To put it simply, it was an armor based off of leather. We didn't make cloaks, but since it looked like light brown leather clothes, with long sleeve arms and full-length pants it should be alright. The metal shells were placed in strategic locations, which further increased its defensive capabilities. We thought about our freedom of movement while creating it, so when we tried it out, it performed far better than expected. It barely obstructed us at all.

We even finished crafting Gobumi-chan's armor that we couldn't complete earlier because of insufficient materials.

Since it's mainly made out of 7-colored bats it looks a bit gaudy though. It somewhat gives the feeling of being a national costume from somewhere.

By the way, the food tonight was prepared from horned rabbits caught by the other Goblins.

It wasn't filling enough, it was still better than nothing. Since it tasted good I pardoned them.

* * *

Day 15

Our first hunt since our Rank Up to Hobgoblins.

Since we were displaying the might of our new bodies for the first time, I'm a bit nervous.

Today, the first prey we encountered was a humanoid with the head of a dog and fur all over its body. I don't know where it got them from but it was wearing rusted armor with a just as rusty longsword. I decided to name this monster, "Kobold". From observation, it seems the Kobolds are a higher rank than Goblins and about the same rank as Orcs.

If we include the equipment, then compared to the Orc we ate, it's probably an even higher rank. In physical strength, the Orc would be more powerful, but the Kobold would be superior in terms of speed and agility.

These two traits.are embodied in the Kobold.

If it were the 'us' from before, we would've retreated immediately, or more likely, used my abilities to avoid the fight altogether. Using Gobumi-chan's accurate, poison-covered stones as support, Gobukichi and I faced the Kobolds from the front.

Excluding myself, who has evolved into a subspecies, Gobukichi's combat ability increased significantly thanks to his equipments. His cudgel was reinforced by wounding shells around it while his shield was made of shell. The Kobold only had its rusty armour while Goblin-kichi had various shell armours to help him. Gobukichi attacked the Kobold directly.

Rank Up is scary isn't it?

Someone who was weak only just yesterday turned into a great warrior in one day.

Goblin Kichi got some minor wounds and had Gobumi-chan treat them using some of our medicinal herbs. The Goblin Elder taught us about medicinal herbs earlier.

While they did that, I took the opportunity to strip the Kobold of its possessions. On his waist hung three stones. Using my [Appraisal] ability, I discovered that they were "Fire Spirit Stones". Apparently non-sentient low-level fire spirits dwell within the stones. I pocketed them and then started stripping off him of his armor. I hung the slightly rusty longsword together with two books I had on my waist.

From the corpse, I took the brain, the heart and the right arm. Gobu Kichi and Gobumi-chan decided to split the rest evenly.

They left an impression as they had a strange texture. Although the taste is subtle, they were still delicious.

Ability [Kobold Language] learned.

Ability [Predict] learned.

As I thought, Kobolds are stronger than the average Hobgoblin. The reason Gobu Kichi could win was because of the huge difference in gear quality. On the other hand, I could win due to my numerous abilities and combat experience.

Also, after eating the three Fire Spirit Stones,

Ability [Pyrokinesis] learned.

I gained the ability to produce fire. In the natural world, it's hard to overcome this difference. With this I can finally make yakiniku, I thought…

And this was the outcome of the battle.

After that, we hunted some horned rabbits, then returned.

Today, the tribute my Goblin subordinates gave me was horned rabbits mixed with Armored Tanukis, which surprised me. "These guys, they're finally growing up…" I lamented to myself.

I think I'll give shell shields to the Goblins who are sent to fetch Armored Tanukis in the future.

For the evening meal, I grilled the meat the others brought, and we had a yakiniku party.

* * *

Day 16

Today, the other Goblins of our generation begged to me something like :"Please teach us the art of killing" while prostrating themselves. The Goblins inside the cave were in a row alongside each other prostrating themselves. It was quite the surreal scene to watch.

You see, the Goblins that brought me food had managed to survive by killing horned rabbits, as expected… However, they also had Night Vipers to fight as opponents Since we've been able to kill them, the Goblins want us, or I should say I, to teach them how to survive against the Night Vipers.

"What do we gain from this?" We asked, and when we told them that they said that they'd give us tribute for it.

Well, it's no great loss for us, so before the sun had reached it's zenith, most of the surviving Goblins, together with Gobukchi and Gobumi-chan, had a combined practice session.

It's a dog eat world, so, from the start, I'm thoroughly going to drill into their bodies that I'm superior to them. No matter if the trainee is male or female. Also, since dealing with insurrections is troublesome, I'm going to make obeying me an instinct, by endless repetition if I have to.

I aim to stop training at the last moment to ensure they don't have any spare energy, while preventing their bodies and minds from breaking.

The result was that everyone, including Gobumi-chan and Gobukichi, didn't had the strength left to move.

For the Goblins who trained and worked to the point of collapsing, I planned on using the tribute they've gathered to make something for them.

I had the motivation to do something, but its probably better if I didn't do anything absurd. It's the end once you die.

…Gobumi-chan lays exhausted and trembling among the other females, with extreme pride showcasing her armor and necklace, but let's pretend I didn't see that.

In the afternoon, I went hunting alone for the first time since my reincarnation.

I don't know how it was in the beginning, but now I can move around this forest like it's my home turf, and when I somehow managed to procure enough for the ones who couldn't move, I concluded that days hunting.

That evening, I went into the inner parts of the cave, where the human women were held captive. Since I turned into a Hobgoblin, I've become closer in appearance to a human, so I thought having a conversation might be possible.

Well, the outcome was - I couldn't have a conversation with them. They were completely broken. Their eyes were utterly dead, and they were drooling uncontrollably. There was a faint smell of corpses around them.

[My version (Josh): Compared to how they were the last time I saw them, they were a lot worse this time. Also, since i last saw her, the youngest of the girls had gotten pregnant. It was an inevitable event, but still, I felt a lot of pity for her. I couldn't help but think that a girl this cute would have married into a nice family, and yet, she ended up, only to be repeatedly violated.]

(Original): Compared to how they were last time I saw them, they were a lot worse this time, also in this short time the youngest of the girls had gotten pregnant. Though it was inevitable, I felt a lot of pity for her. I couldn't help but think that a girl this cute could've married into a family, yet she ended up here only to be continuously violated.

I didn't want this to continue, and so I asked,

"Do you want to die?"

If it was the me from before, I'd end up pressing my hands together to offer a prayer, but now that I've ranked up into a Hobgoblin, I asked. The way I am now, I'd be able to kill or help these girls if they asked me to. Since even if I was found out, my safety was guaranteed.

However, my question was left unanswered. There was some movement; her small, weak lips moved slightly, and as if she just remembered how to, a tear fell from her eye. Having understood the women's intentions, I took from my pouch a small, liquid filled bottle that I had obtained from hunting the Kobolds, which I left behind. After I handed it to them, I walked back to the cave bedroom. I didn't look back.

* * *

Day 17

I woke up early, and went to the interior of the cave. The captured women were all dead. They all laid still, as if they were asleep. From the look of things, the girls had drank poison and died in their sleep. Where they got that poison is, however, a mystery. Truly, a mystery.

After taking the small empty bottle that was laid close to them and storing it inside the bag hanging from my waist, being the one who discovered them, I went to report to the Goblin elder.

The Goblin elder hurriedly rushed over, and in front of the limp pseudo-Goblin that had spilled from the beautiful girls' womb, he cried bitterly whilst grieving however, I couldn't care less.

For the girl's corpses, I took responsibility for their disposal, and because it was a pity to just let wild animals feed on them, I decided to cremate them. As payment for my labour, I took a heart, a stomach, a breast and a uterus.

Since the [Pyrokinesis] ability I got the other day wasn't enough, I thought about what I usually do, so I collected a bunch of [Oily Grass] to make it burn well and a bunch of twigs were used to ensure the heat was enough.

After using my [Pyrokinesis] to ignite the fire, I prayed for the girls happiness in the next world whilst looking at the pillar of blazing flame.

Namu Amida Butsu. (Buddhist prayer)

Among the girls, there seemed to be those with adventurer skills. Quite a lot of them of actually.

This group of migrant workers, they were perhaps unexpectedly strong. They might only have looked weak because they were captured.

Ability [Human Language] learned.

Ability [Continental Letter Deciphering] learned.

Ability [Mental Mapping] learned.

Ability [Job-Magician] learned.

Ability [Job-Light Swordsman] learned.

Ability [Job-Druid] learned.

Ability [Job-Craftsman] learned.

It's unusual for me, but I didn't feel the slightest inclination to learn about my new abilities. After morning practice, I sent out Gobu Kichi and Gobumi-chan to go hunting since I wasn't in the mood, I tried making shell-based shield, armour and sword from the materials accumulated to this day.

Lately, crafting has become somewhat of a hobby of mine…

Ah, it seems my new skill [job craftsman] became immediately.

The goods I crafted came out a lot better than before. The ability, like its name implied, corrected the mistakes.

Speaking of which, the shield and armour came out successfully, the shell-based sword ended up in failure.

As for my meal, Gobu Kichi and Gobumi-chan shared a part of what they hunted, together with the tribute that had increased since yesterday.

Ah, this might be a bit late, but Gobumi-chan had also turned into a Hobgoblin today.

She'd became quite cute, it was intimidating.

The difference from when she was a Goblin is remarkable.

Because her old equipment is now too small for her, I lent her my spares.

She made a subtle expression, happy while unsatisfied, so I decided to make her brand new equipment at a later date.

Truth is, I would have happily made it today, but there was just not enough time.

* * *

Day 18

After finishing morning practice the three of us gobs came upon some Kobolds while out hunting.

This time there were three of them, two of which were equipped like the earlier ones with armor and long swords, however the last one had a short bow and a quiver.

While thinking "Is this the second day in a row to strengthen Gobumi?", I checked the surroundings for additional enemies, in order to make a decision.

With it being all clear, I chose to commence the assault.

With the Kobold that could attack from range with the bow and arrows being a higher threat level compared to the others, a sneak attack with a poisoned stone from Gobumi's staff sling was the decisive action.

With the poisoned stone hitting the Kobold right in the eye, we stole away the bow wielding Kobolds usual composure and vision.

Without letting the time while the other Kobolds got in a panic get wasted, Gobukichi and I went to utterly defeat the two Kobolds who possessed long swords that looked slightly better than the ones we got earlier.

My longsword might be worn-out, but for my current body it's just the right size, and I've gotten used to my body now, so separating the Kobolds head from his body was easy.

Right now, the horn I used earlier is more like a knife now, which might have made me feel the difference all the more.

Gobukichi broke all his opponents bones violently, which was kinda gross to look at.

Gobumi-chan, with the (pseudo-)knife I gave her earlier made of obsidian(-look alike), slit the bow wielding Kobolds throat and then gave it a finishing blow.

Apparently, Gobumi-chan's evolution direction lay in brains and speed.

To use weapons cleverly, intelligence was needed after all.

After that, we worked hard at disassembling the body. We collected the armor, Gobumi-chan got the short bow and quiver, and I took the slightly better looking longsword for myself.

Because there was no suitable loot for Gobukichi he will have to wait for the next time.

While these Kobolds sadly didn't have any fire spirit stones, my collection of small bags increased by three.

One I kept for my own use, and the other two I gave to the other Goblins for putting medicinal plants in. Now, if something were to happen, I'm sure they will be of great use. And so, each Goblin got one body to eat.

I didn't get any new abilities, and while I felt that with just a bit more I'd gain something more, the ability I already got, [Predict], got slightly stronger. [Predict] lets me see my opponents attack trajectories as red threads, so in battle it can be incredibly convenient.

After that we hunted whatever we came across, after which we returned to the cave in order to sleep.

* * *

Day 19

After completing morning practice, I didn't go hunting, instead I went to look at the warehouse in the inner parts of the cave. Since some of the captured girls had adventurer-like abilities, it occurred to me that items relating to those abilities might have been captured together with the girls.

From just looking at the stuff, even a genius like me couldn't decide what's trash and what's worth keeping, however thanks to the ability I got from the Orc, [Detect Analysis], I could see the items details.

In addition, since analysing stuff gave the ability experience, even analysing duds wasn't a waste of time.

With such a carefree mood, it seems I found a treasure trove. And a fairly large one at that.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Staff] Beginner Magician's stave.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Staff] Blessed Mistletoe stave.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Sword] Iron Estocs x3.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Dagger] Bowie Knife x4.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Axe] Iron Battle-Axe x2.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Ranged] Crossbow x2.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Weapon-Consumable] Iron Tipped Arrow x50.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Protection-Shield] Iron Round Shield x2.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Protection-Armor] Damaged Breastplate.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Protection-hand] Solid Iron-Wrought Gauntlet.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Medicine] Health Potions that might have gone bad x6.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Medicine] Mana Potions that might have gone bad x8.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Medicine] Holy Water Bottles of the Enrique faith x3.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Storage] Backpacks x2.

Goblin-rou has obtained [Storage] Field Pack x3

Goblin-rou has obtained [Book] First Volume of "World Wandering Journal: From Imperial Capitals to Unexplored Regions".

Goblin-rou has obtained [Book] Second Volume (of three) of "Introduction to magic - Basic sorcery".

Goblin-rou has obtained [Book] "Nature of God's Prayer: Scenario of Receiving".

Goblin-rou has obtained [Book] "Recommended guide to Erietta Continent's Alphabet".

When going over it, I found treasure after treasure.

At first glance it seems to be composed entirely of unusable scrap, however below the uppermost layer, lots of useful stuff laid sleeping.

Yeah, it seems this place truly is a treasure trove.

While there's no great difference between the estocs I found and the long sword I'm carrying currently, however since they were in a better condition, I decided to swap.

Comparing the obsidian knife I'd been using till now with the bowie knives, their blades were longer and their edges sharper.The blade is single edged, and only at the tip is it double-edged, I suspect it's meant to be used as a hunting knife, so I took the knives as well.

Four knives might be a lot, but since the production of pocket knives already has begun, there's really no problem.

I looked forward to when at a later time I'd disassemble the knives to learn how they were made.

After that, except for the estoc I picked and the longsword I swapped for it, I ate the rest of the swords.

Ability [Improved Slashing Power] learned.

Ability [Improved Piercing Power] learned.

I learned [Improved Slashing Power] from eating the longsword, and [Improved Piercing Power] from eating the estocs.

In order for the reader to understand this, I'll tell you about my [Consumption absorption ability].

I learn abilities from more than eating living beings. However, for items above a certain level, the power of the learned abilities depends on the the quality of the item, and for it to enter my mind I must have used the item a certain amount. If I haven't, then eating the item would be pointless, and in that way I have to keep wondering, "I wonder if this will go well now", I've had to practice that perception quite a bit. Even if I make a mistake I'll recover, I told myself to give me the bravery to keep trying.

Reaching the top feels really good.

While I was doing that by myself, Gobukichi and Gobumi-chan came by. Apparently they thought it odd that they couldn't see me, so they went looking for me. They really came at a great time. I'd taken the potions and other stuff that you could hang on the belt and put in the field pack, I crammed as much of the rest as I could into the backpack. That which I couldn't fit inside my bags, I asked Gobukichi and Gobumi-chan to carry for me.

And then Gobukichi graduated from his shell-wrapped cudgel, to a rustic looking battle-axe and his wooden shield with pieces of carapace sewn on was switched for an iron round shield. Since there was a hole in the middle of the round shield, we didn't really have a choice and made an impromptu fix by attaching a piece of carapace there.

Then I had him equip the breast plate instead of the shell reinforced leather armor I made for him two days ago. Together with the shell-helmet I made for him two days ago, Gobu Kichi's defense was the highest by far out of us three.

He totally looked like heavy infantry.

He kept the cudgel he had used till today strapped over his back as a spare.

To Gobumi-chan, I gave the two crossbows and 50 arrows. In addition, I gave her the obsidian knife I had been using till now in addition to one of the bowie knives to use as insurance, but any more than this was, when looking at the weight of the stuff she was carrying, the limit.

Nevertheless, out of us three, the one with the highest ranged offensive power was her and with her deft handling of the two knives, her offensive potential shouldn't be made light of.

For how she looked, the impression she gave was of either a hunter or an archer.

And at the end, myself. Two long swords were replaced by an estoc, with a small shield reinforced by shells similar to the one Gobukichi has. This shield was made so it could be fixed to the right arm, and still allow me to move my wrist without problems.

To protect my left hand, I equipped the gauntlet wrought from solid iron. The gauntlet had less defensive power than the round shield, however if the aim was just to deflect attacks then it should be enough.

This way I had reasonable defence, whilst not hurting my ease of movement too much.

With the effects of the ability [Job Light Swordsman] added, I feel like it's risen by another level again.

And also, since today the Goblins collected an earlier unthinkable amount of tribute for us, we returned to them. I couldn't eat it all; it was far too much.

* * *

Day 20

The morning was spent with practice. Compared to when we started, the expressions of the Goblins had changed. Yeah, because Goblins mature quickly, startling changes can be seen even in a short time, if training is done in earnest.

This might be because, if they don't quickly adapt to their surroundings, they'll simply die.

In the afternoon, we hunted. We caught 10 Night Vipers, 14 Armored Tanukis and 5 Kobolds. This is probably mostly because our equipment had rapidly become a lot better. Or perhaps I should say, the deadly combination of Gobumi-chan's powerful and accurate shots with the crossbow together with the rapid firing of the short bow was brutal. Because Gobu Kichi and I acted as her shield, it became even more brutal. To bring the battle to an end, Gobu Kichi used his high defense and his battle axe to decapitate the remainders.

Together with my abundant abilities that I used to continuously vary my attack pattern and the direction of the battle, opponents like Kobolds didn't pose the slightest threat for us. Perhaps with how things stood right now, even if the Kobolds turned up with twice our numbers we'd probably not have any problems.

Only, what I truly wanted to eat was Orcs. This was in order to strengthen the ability I got from the Orc earlier; after that one time, we hadn't seen even one Orc.

I quickly wanted to find more Orcs; however, today I went back ahead of time to the cave in order to read books.

Well, having the ability [Job Magician] is nice and all, and that my magic power was increased by my subspecies was also nice, but because I hadn't the foggiest idea what magic was, I couldn't actually use any magic. That's why, in this way I was reading "Introduction to magic - basic sorcery" until morning came up the day after.

You might say I had surprising difficulty getting a grasp of it, which made it a rough trial. Or rather, I feel there's a limit to how much I can understand just from reading books. And what's more, I started from the second volume of three!

If only, I could see someone use magic at least once!

Time, without listening to my screams, steadily moved forward.

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