Transfer of Command

Standing at the edge of the Goblin village, the Rescue Corps wore expressions of utter shock. Deep within the dense forest, there was actually such a proper village. Not only were there Goblin troops drilling, but Goblins farming fields and raising livestock as well. Everything was orderly.

Completely unlike the Goblins everyone imagined living in caves, these Goblins had built exquisite wooden houses around tree trunks using neatly arranged planks. The village was larger, more refined, and more beautiful than many human settlements.

Beneath the wooden houses, inside several sheds, cages of various sizes held the missing adventurers.

At the center of the village stood a wooden palace spanning several great trees, as large as dozens of wooden houses. Its roof was decorated with glowing metals, and red banners bearing symbols of the Goblins hung from it.

Seka Mens pointed it out. "That is the building where I saw Elite Goblins coming and going."

Did he think we were all blind? It was so obvious that anyone could see it.

Yang Yu rolled his eyes. "We only care about where the traps are."

After hearing that, Seka Mens immediately began pointing them out, identifying every Abyss Trap in the area through which they had escaped. As for the other directions, he could do nothing.

"Since we know all the traps on that side, we'll make it our main battlefield." Andeno organized the group, rallying them and bolstering their spirits.

There were no fewer than a thousand Goblins in sight. Excluding those tending livestock and farming, at least seven or eight hundred could fight. Goblins of different levels carried different weapons: stone axes for the low-level ones, followed by spears and swords.

After scanning the area, Yang Yu found the smelting furnace, but there were no signs that ore had ever been used there. It was certain that their weapons had been forged from plundered metal. Otherwise, even the most basic Goblins would have been fully armed.

"When the Goblins on duty over there change shifts and leave a gap, we'll launch a surprise attack. We don't have much time. We destroyed so many eyes that they may already be on guard. We must proceed carefully."

Andeno continued assessing the situation. At the same time, he quietly walked over to Yang Yu and threw a muscular arm around him.

"Lord Yang Yu, what do you think? Will this plan work?"

Being hugged by such a muscular man made Yang Yu shudder.

Just talk properly. Hugging me like this is pretty embarrassing. No, that's not what I mean. I'm not interested in that kind of thing. Please spare me! Thank you!

Ever since Yang Yu had helped Andeno find Seka Mens and gather information, he had felt that the way Andeno looked at him had changed.

How should he describe it? Like a girl after school, her cheeks flushed red by the setting sun, confessing tenderly with affection in her eyes.

That was exactly the feeling. Yang Yu had even started to wonder whether this old man had taken a liking to him.

To keep himself from turning purple and bent, he stared fixedly at the Goblin camp.

Although these Goblins were extremely numerous, their levels were not high, all between level 11 and 16. A few AOE attacks could wipe them out. There were roughly a hundred above level 16, about equal to the Rescue Corps.

"If that's all there is, it might work."

"Then there's no problem."

Having received Yang Yu's approval, Andeno was about to issue orders to the entire force when a group of Goblins lifted the curtains of the wooden palace and stepped onto the broad wooden platform. They looked down over the forest, their gazes fixed directly on Yang Yu's group.

Among those short Goblins stood an exceptionally imposing figure, nearly two meters tall. The Elite Goblins, less than 1.2 meters tall, looked like a group of dwarves beside it. It wore armor of the same style as Seka Mens's, though the color was slightly different and lacked Seka Mens's shine. In its right hand, it held a thick, long black staff.

If Yang Yu had not seen its verdant face, complete with a long nose and pointed ears, he might have thought a human had infiltrated the Goblins.

When Yang Yu opened its status panel, he was instantly dumbfounded.

[Goblin King Jane Raji Cide Level: LV30
HP: 2140/2140 MP: 1130/1130

Strength 322, Defense 151, Intelligence 402, Special Defense 92, Agility 78, Endurance 312

Resistance: Physical Resistance 10%, Magic Resistance 15%, Wind Resistance 30%]

Over 300 Strength, over 400 Intelligence, more than 2,000 HP, and more than 1,000 MP? It dealt massive damage while being tough as hell, and it was tough as hell while dealing massive damage. Was that even reasonable?

Even Andeno, level 42 and packed with muscle, only had around 360 Strength.

This was destined to be a hard battle. He wondered whether it was still too late to run.

"Andeno, I think we should retreat for now. That Goblin is not something we can handle easily."

Andeno's expression was grave, but he showed no intention of retreating. "I know the opponent is strong. Now that we've seen it, it truly possesses strength far beyond ours. But we can no longer escape! You noticed it too, Lord Yang Yu. They've locked onto us. Running now will only lead to death. All we can do is hold them back and wait as long as possible for reinforcements that may never come. Even if we die, we must strike their forces as hard as we can."

Weren't you acting like you would obey my every word just now? How did you suddenly become capable of judging the situation, with that righteous, fight-to-the-death expression?

Yang Yu smiled helplessly.

Retreating carried risks, but it was still better than being wiped out entirely. In the end, he had underestimated the difficulty of this mission. If his adventuring party fought the Goblin King, their odds were at best one in ten.

To reach even even odds, he would have to use every trick he had, coordinate every person here, and bring out their initiative. As long as he could drag the battle into a war of attrition, the Goblin forces, lacking priests and mages, would gradually fall behind.

The problem was that he was not the captain of this Rescue Corps. It was impossible for him to command a hundred people at once.

"Listen carefully. We will hold our position for now. If they attack, I will be the first to step out and fight their leader. If I die, all command will be handed to Lord Yang Yu. No—from this moment onward, his orders are to be followed. His orders take priority over mine!"

Yang Yu was stunned when he heard Andeno say that.

At such a critical moment, Andeno had handed all command over to him. Not a single person present objected to Andeno's decision. They merely nodded one after another, acknowledging the captain who had been entrusted with command in a crisis.

Just when I needed a pillow, someone delivered one to me.

Seeing this, Yang Yu instead revealed a faint smile. "Keeping everyone alive may be very, very difficult. So when I ask you to sacrifice yourselves for the group, do not hesitate, and do not hate me."

"If there are deaths, I will bear full responsibility." Andeno's gaze was resolute.

"No. If there are deaths, I'll take responsibility." Yang Yu smiled. "I said my orders come first. Pull yourselves together, listen carefully to my commands, remember your own unit number and everyone else's, and carry out every order I give without fail. Then perhaps all of us can make it out alive."