Punishment

In front of Avril, Lin Lei was a gentle, handsome older brother. In front of his subordinates, however, he was a cold, iron-fisted ruler.

The next day, at the Crouching Dragon Ravine barracks, Lin Lei sat in the middle of the stands, watching Lin Yu and several soldiers kneeling behind him.

"Baron, it's time."

A guard beside him reminded him softly.

"Good. Then pass the order to Lin Yu and tell him to begin. I want to see how he deals with these men."

Lin Lei narrowed his eyes. From above, he could see familiar faces, even though the kneeling soldiers had their heads bowed.

Most of them really were veterans who had left Flower Territory with him.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

A drummer nearby struck the Black-Veined War Drum with all his might. The soldiers around them lined up and watched Lin Yu. Allen stood beside the platform, watching coldly.

"Tias, Kui Xingfeng... After investigation, these men have repeatedly oppressed the people and extorted money, treating military discipline as if it meant nothing. Those whose offenses are less serious will receive fifty strokes of the rod. The rest will be beheaded in public to uphold the army's authority.

"I now announce that this judgment will be carried out immediately."

When Lin Yu announced the punishment, the soldiers—who had thought this was just a formality and that they would escape serious consequences—panicked.

Some collapsed and wept. Some stared blankly. Some accepted their fate calmly, while others begged Lin Lei for mercy. All the varied faces of humanity were on display at once.

Seeing how they reacted, Allen was angry at their failure to do better, yet his eyes still reddened. Luo Ji even pleaded with Lin Lei on their behalf.

After all, they had come here together as brothers. Both Luo Ji and Allen had grown deeply attached to them.

Lin Lei's clothes were damp with tears. He shut his eyes, refusing to look at the gruesome scene. Though he had seen more than enough bloodshed, he still couldn't get used to this.

"Whoosh."

After several thuds as the blades struck the men's necks, the pleas fell silent. Lin Lei let out a breath. He didn't want to see what came next, so he returned to the council hall with Allen and Luo Ji accompanying him.

"The will to fight for a cause is stronger than a body of steel. These brave soldiers didn't die in battle; they fell to crime instead. It's a tragedy, and a warning to us. I don't want to see this happen again. The two of you must strengthen the soldiers' ideological education."

"Yes, Baron."

Allen and Luo Ji answered in unison.

"Now that Crouching Dragon Ravine has developed, the army can no longer remain as disorganized as it was at the beginning. I've decided to reorganize the soldiers and assign them to different roles."

Lin Lei lowered his head and considered the matter as he spoke.

"First, the soldiers will be divided into three legions: one Bronze Legion and two Silver Legions. All Bronze-rank soldiers will be assigned to the Bronze Legion. Once they reach Silver rank, they'll be promoted to a Silver Legion.

"The Silver-rank soldiers will be divided evenly between the two Silver Legions. I plan to appoint Lin Yu as the Bronze Legion's commander, and the two of you as commanders of the Silver Legions.

"Each legion will have infantry, cavalry, engineers, and archers. The Silver Legions will also be equipped with the Dwarf Muskets we just purchased to boost their fighting strength. Once our territory's mage training program is up and running, we'll add mages to the army as well, improving its ability to adapt to changing situations.

"The Bronze Legion will mostly be stationed at Crouching Dragon Ravine. It will patrol the territory, hunt down bandits and murderers, and handle civil disputes.

"The Silver Legions will focus mainly on training. They'll only be deployed for major operations, such as large-scale monster incursions or wars with other territories.

"Of course, aside from these three main legions, Green Goblin Town will have its own armed forces. Blackwater Wharf—the new town Furell is building—will also have its own local city defense force."

Lin Lei laid out his entire plan in one go.

"Thank you for your trust and promotion, Lord. We won't let you down."

Allen and Luo Ji, the two future legion commanders, were delighted. They thumped their chests and pledged their loyalty.

"Enough. Go and get started. Remember to inform Lin Yu."

"Yes, we'll take our leave."

Allen and Luo Ji exchanged a glance, then left the council hall. They hurried to the barracks and began competing to recruit the best soldiers they had worked with.

As partners, they knew each other well. They both understood that whoever moved first would get the pick of the best. If either of them hesitated, the other would snap up all the good soldiers, leaving his legion to lag behind.

Blackwater Wharf was a hive of activity. Trees of every size, clods of earth, and stones had all been cleared away. Several hundred tents, made from thick cowhide and sturdy enough to offer decent protection, were scattered across the open ground.

Soldiers of all kinds were hard at work nearby, both goblins and humans. More and more settlers were arriving, so the area wouldn't be overwhelmed all at once.

"Lin Shuang, what do you think of this spot? I think it'd be perfect for building a wharf."

Furell pointed to a bay in the distance and turned to his partner.

Lin Shuang had once been a squad leader. After Furell led his Horde in submitting to Lin Lei, Lin Lei had promoted him to be Furell's adjutant. He often explained human customs and taboos to Furell, who treated him well in return.

Over time, the two had become close friends despite belonging to different races. They always listened carefully to each other's opinions.

The place Furell pointed to was a U-shaped shore. They had tested its depth by listening to the splash of a thrown stone, and it was deep enough to accommodate even large ships. There were no jagged rocks on either side, nor any other obstacles to construction.

"It should work. I compared it with the bay location the lord gave me, and it's very similar to the place you're pointing out. I expect it's the spot the lord meant. Let's settle on this one, then."

After they finished discussing the general direction of the docks, Lin Shuang began going over the details with Furell. He didn't take the lord's instructions lightly in the slightest.

"Chief, our people are fighting with the humans!"

Suddenly, a goblin Boar Rider rushed in and reported in a panic.

"What? Take me there at once!"

Furell immediately stopped working and stared sternly at the messenger. Lin Shuang looked up as well. He was just as concerned about such a sensitive issue between races.

Led by the Boar Rider, Furell and Lin Shuang hurried to the brawl.

"Everyone, stop! You—get in there and pull them apart!"

Furell roared, his voice brimming with anger, like a lion in a rage.

At his order, the onlookers quickly pulled the two or three dozen people apart.

Seeing their bruised faces, bloodstained clothes, and pained groans, both Furell and Lin Shuang looked grim.

"Thirty strokes of the military rod for everyone! No dinner tonight. Guards, carry out the punishment!"

"You're all clearly full of energy, with too much strength to spare. Fine—stay in bed and don't even think about going anywhere."

Furell didn't ask what had happened, nor did he need to. As a goblin, if he punished the humans, their officers and soldiers would resent him and only pay lip service to his orders. The lord's work would become very difficult to carry out.

But if he punished the goblins, his reputation among his own people would suffer badly, and he might even be branded a "traitor to the goblins." Either way, he'd be in the wrong. Since your position shaped your perspective, giving both sides the same punishment was the best approach.

Furell and Lin Shuang had hurried over, and in the end they hurried away again.

"Lin Shuang, this has only just begun, and tensions between the goblins and humans have already surfaced. If something serious happens later, I don't know how I'll explain it to the baron."

Furell no longer sounded like the decisive leader he'd been while meting out punishment. His low voice betrayed his lack of confidence.

"Don't worry, brother. Every beginning is difficult. There are bound to be plenty of conflicts between the goblins and humans at first. The lord expected this. He told us to do more to educate the soldiers, so I'm sure they'll overcome their differences in time. There won't be as many problems as there are now."

Lin Shuang smiled and patted Furell, who was half a head taller than him, reassuring him. His upbeat words showed how much faith he had in Lin Lei.

"I hope so. Let's put that aside and continue discussing the city defenses..."

Furell forced himself to rally and spoke.

At that moment, while the humans were hard at work along the shore, pairs of blood-red eyes watched their camp from the nearby sea. Their gleaming eyes were filled with bloodlust and savagery.

In Green Goblin Town's central plaza, a large crowd of goblins gathered around a bonfire. Vix, the Grand Elder, stood before them with the other elders.

"Great God of Invention and God of Fur, the time has come for our goblin race's annual rank-advancement ceremony. I now declare the ceremony open! All goblins on the verge of breaking through to Bronze rank or Silver rank, step forward and stand before the fire!"

As soon as she finished speaking, forty or fifty goblins stepped out from the crowd. Most had no rank, while a few were Bronze Fifth-Rank Warriors.

"There are a third more people this year than last," one goblin in the crowd remarked.

"Yeah, there are thirteen more than last year. It seems our people have grown much stronger," another goblin behind him agreed.

"Looks like serving under the humans isn't so bad after all. Our people have grown stronger, too."

"Hey, what do you mean by that? Have you forgotten you're a goblin? Do you think you're human now?"

An old goblin suddenly spoke up, angrily scolding the young goblin who had spoken earlier.

"You old fool! Can't you speak properly? What do you mean, I've forgotten I'm a goblin...?"

"Silence during the ceremony!"

Hearing the commotion in the crowd, the Grand Elder stamped her staff and spoke.

As an ancient incantation rang out, the more than a thousand bones in the fire gradually melted. Green flames rose from the bodies of each goblin undergoing the ceremony.

The flames in the bonfire grew more and more intense.

Vix and the other elders controlled the incantation as they cast the spell, beads of sweat beginning to form on their foreheads.

"Pfft!"

The first goblin successfully raised his aura to Bronze rank. The rest followed, one after another, like dominoes falling in succession.