24. Raise and build!

Ko Byeong-gap laughed despondently. In front of him, the five Goblins responded as if they couldn’t understand what he had just said.

The weapon that was aimed at Ko Byeong-gap slowly lowered.

“Lo… Lord?” One Hob Goblin barely spoke.

Ko Byeong-gap used his sword like a staff and raised his body in response.

“Nice to meet you. Is this your first time meeting your Lord?”

“Uh, how?”

“Well, what would you do?”

The five Hob Goblins turned to each other without speaking.

“Come here, guys. No, I’ll go.”

He trudged along, and the Goblins backed slightly, perhaps out of fear or awe. It was usually like that when he first met them.

Ko Byeong-gap asked the Goblins in a friendly manner, shoulder-to-shoulder, “Who’s the boss here?”

“B-boss?”

“I mean, who’s the leader leading you? Goblin or another monster?”

“Go… Goblin. It’s…”

“Sigh, should I have bought a lottery ticket today?”

The Goblins only had question marks in response.

“Come on, let’s go. Guide me to your boss.”

“Woo…”

He felt their hesitation. In times like that, there was a magic bullet.

“Don’t you want to go to Ashvilam?”

“Oh, Ashvilam!”

“I want to go!”

“I’ll let you go. Just let me know.”

“Yes, sir!”

The Goblin’s attitude reversed like paper flipping over. They were excited and took the lead. On the other hand, more Goblins appeared while they moved through the world.

‘I was lucky. Finding a crack with an entire Goblin colony.’

The group of Goblins led by Ko Byeong-gap gradually increased. Almost all of them were Hob Goblins. From the depths of their little world, Giant Goblins and new faces also appeared.

‘Beast Goblin?’

Beast Goblin. It was a D-class monster.

Its basic appearance was similar to that of the Hob Goblins, but it had body hair and features that resembled a wolf. They could mutate, and when they mutated, they took the form of beasts, as the name suggested.

‘That’s good. If we have different types of Goblins, I’ll get more use out of them.’

“Do we still have a long way to go?”

“Almost there. Here.”

By the time they got out of the field and came down near the private houses, the boss, whom he was looking forward to seeing, finally appeared.

A Goblin Shaman dressed up in all kinds of ornaments.

Yes, it was a Goblin Shaman. It appeared in front of Ko Byeong-gap, who led a guard of Giant Goblins. It seemed to have sensed something unusual had happened.

Its face was colored with astonishment after it faced Ko Byeong-gap. Its eyes were about to pop out.

“This… What is this…”

“I see you’re the boss here. So, what’s your name?”

“… It’s Dorma.”

“Nice to meet you, Dorma. I am Goblin Lord Ko Byeong-gap.” Ko Byeong-gap had announced loudly. Suddenly, Dorma touched his forehead.

“Huh… Oh my God. The real Goblin Lord. How could such a thing happen?”

“Hmm?”

Dorma had a different reaction compared to the Goblins since there seemed to be more confusion than joy. Ko Byeong-gap felt puzzled and thought he would get him right away.

“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?”

“Of course, there’s a problem!”

“What?”

It was certainly a different response than he expected. Dorma hesitated at first and then said, “You’re not the same kind as us!”

Ko Byeong-gap shrugged his shoulders. “As you can see, yes.”

“But for what reason do you have the essence of the Lord?”

“There’s a reason for it. No, why does it matter?”

“Do you think it doesn’t matter?”

“No, damn it, I mean… Oh, I’m sorry for swearing. Anyway, please explain it to me.”

“Oh my, oh my.”

Dorma slumped down. He was like a fighter who lost their country. Dorma replied in a muffled voice, “So, the survival of my species is in the hands of another race, and you want me to smile and like it?”

“…”

Ko Byeong-gap could understand Dorma’s words. It was easy if he thought of it in reverse. If he discovered that the only leader of mankind was a Goblin, wouldn’t his answer be the same? He understood and sympathized with Dorma’s feelings, but he didn’t feel very good because he seemed to be ignored.

Ko Byeong-gap thought he was better than any Goblin.

“Ah, what’s wrong with me not being a Goblin? All I have to do is work well. So what does it have to do with being a human or a Goblin?”

“Why doesn’t it matter… The boss…”

“Hey! Let me know if you have any complaints! Don’t just cry like that!” Ko Byeong-gap shouted furiously. He hated sitting and whining like that.

The Goblins next to him cringed with a frightened look. The Goblin Shaman, Dorma, looked up after looking at the ground for a long time.

“I will dare to say something to the Lord from my humble body. Do you have affection for our people?”

“… What?”

“Can you love the Goblins with all your heart? Will you be a strong support in the face of any hardship and adversity? Can you promise never to abandon us?”

“Hey, hey, wait…”

“If your race and our Goblins fight, would you be willing to take this side without hesitation?”

Ko Byeong-gap couldn’t easily answer since it was a question that required a lot of thought.

When Ko Byeong-gap failed to answer immediately, Dorma smiled mournfully and nodded.

“Look, that’s the difference between you and us…”

“Quiet!” Ko Byeong-gap shouted. It was so loud that the whole world seemed to ring. He took a cigarette out of his inner pocket and bit it in his mouth. Immediately, he lit the fire and sucked in the filter deeply.

Sigh. Sigh.

“What the fuck are you talking about? Listen to all that I have to say!”

He turned away and caught the attention of every Goblin.

“I don’t know if it’s love or anything, and I promise you only two things. Reconstruction of Ashvilam and the prosperity of the Goblins!”

Was it possible to truly love the Goblins? However, no matter what hardships and adversity they faced, he would be a support for them.

He wondered if he could never abandon the Goblins. Between humans and the Goblins, was it possible to take the Goblin’s side unconditionally?

To be honest, he couldn’t say for sure, but there was one unchanging truth. The Goblin’s prosperity and Ashvilam’s reconstruction were directly linked to his interests, and Ko Byeong-gap had no intention to turn his back on his beliefs.

He crouched down in front of Dorma, and then after he put his face close enough to reach him, he roared out, “I will rebuild the fallen kingdom no matter what! And only take the side of those who sympathize with it! If you don’t believe me, scratch your stomach and waste your time here, and you’ll find out.”

“Are… Are you serious? Do you really intend to raise Ashvilam?”

“What kind of talk is this long? I will not tolerate further questions. Those who will stick to me, bow and swear your allegiance!”

There was only a magical stillness left in the place where his sky-shaking roar passed, and a second later…

“Lord, sir!”

“Lord, sir!”

“Loyalty. I swear!”

Behind him, every Goblin in the tiny world bowed.

[Hob Goblin (81), Giant Goblin (29), Beast Goblin (23), and Goblin Shaman (1) have been transferred to Ashvilam.]

“We sincerely welcome you to our family, you guys.”

* * *

“So, Gobung, please.”

“Yep! Don’t worry!”

Gobung bowed his head and shouted, “Everyone, follow me!”

He led 134 new Goblins back to Ashvilam. Ko Byeong-gap came out of the rift empty-handed, and as he stepped outside, the crack began to close quickly. If there were no living life inside, the crack would die immediately.

When the crack disappeared, the vineyard owner rushed in. She was full of joy.

“Oh my God! Did you finish it in less than 30 minutes after entering?”

Ko Byeong-gap secretly hid the cigarette he had put in his mouth and said, “Yes, it’s over. You can be rest assured now.”

“Hey, bachelor! Thank you! Gosh!”

The vineyard lady clung to Ko Byeong-gap’s arms and jumped, so he had to stand like a wooden stone for a while.

“You are truly my benefactor! But, please wait a minute!”

The middle-aged woman called somewhere. Moments later, a man who appeared to be her husband appeared with a car. There were three boxes of grape juice in the cargo hold of the truck.

“We don’t have anything to give, so take this and eat it.”

“Yes. I will take it.”

“Take a look! Thank you!”

Ko Byeong-gap got into his car and left the vineyard. He smoked a cigarette all the way out of the village of Shimok-ri. He didn’t feel like smoking too much these days, but he couldn’t get it out of his mouth.

-Do you have affection for our people?

What Dorma said lingered in his ears like a mosquito on a summer night.

“I’m going to be sick. Have I even come to love them now?”

It wasn’t such a silly question. Even if he had a dog, he would’ve taken care of it with love. Love might be an essential virtue for a Lord, who had to lead hundreds, thousands, and tens of thousands.

Ko Byeong-gap thought about whether he could truly love the Goblins. He wasn’t sure yet. It wasn’t simply due to their ugly appearance and that they were different species.

Currently, he has too much to worry about. He was far from loving someone. It meant that even if he only worried about his mother and money, he still wouldn’t have room for such things.

Love was preserved for the wealthy. At least that was what Ko Byeng-gap thought.

“It’s a day that makes you want to sharpen a knife.”

He had achieved the purpose of renunciation, but his mood was shaky. He moved his body frantically, wanting to slash at monsters. Suddenly, his cell phone started to cry.

Beep! Beep!

“Hmm?”

It was the signal when a disaster alert text came in. Ko Byeong-gap stopped the car on the shoulder and checked the text.

[Emergency Disaster Text]

Cracks occurred in Yeongjeon-dong, Dong-gu, Daejeon, and the shopping mall across Yeongjeon’s apartments. Residents of Yeongjeon-dong should refrain from approaching and be careful of secondary damage.

He seemed to have entered the jurisdiction of Daejeon City, so he rushed to the Hunternet. A part of the clean map was marked with a red dot like a jade tee.

Indeed, there was a crack right across the apartment complex. Luckily, it was only D-rank.

‘If it’s Daejeon, is the Prose Guild holding onto it tight?’

In each metropolitan area, there was one large guild that dominated each province. In the case of Seoul, a super-large guild called the Seven Elites divided the districts and managed them.

Felix, Inicium, Shakra, Somniom, etc…

Anyway, such guilds monitored and managed cracks in the city 24 hours a day.

‘Shall I try to join in?’

If he did well, he could make a million won by dipping his feet. Fortunately, he also wanted to cut monsters, so he quickly turned the steering wheel. It wasn’t long before he reached where the crack occurred.

When he arrived, the control line had already fallen, and there were many association officials. In addition, in front of the crack, there were about four people who looked like hunters.

Ko Byeong-gap grabbed his equipment and approached it.

“How did you get here?” An association staff member had spotted him then approached.

“I’m a Hunter. I’m here to take part in an emergency subjugation.”

“Can I see your Hunter ID?”

He immediately handed over his Hunter ID.

Kim Tae-yong, a member of the association, said after a brief look at his Hunter ID, “Are you D-class?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Hmmmm, please wait.”

Kim Tae-yong whispered to his boss, who was working in the back.

“Chief Park, a new person has come to participate in the subjugation. What should I do? Do we take him?”

“What the hell are you asking? Accept him.”

“Well, it’s…”

“What else? What’s wrong?”

“The person who wants to participate is D-class.”

“Why, what’s wrong with that?”

“Look over there.”

Kim Tae-yong pointed to Ko Byeong-gap.

“He only brought a sword.”

“Huh, a bloody mosquito?” Chief Park spat out abusive language.

A mosquito. In an emergency subjugation, it referred to a shameless person who would leave behind everything for money.

Park thought about it for a while and said it as if throwing it aside, “Just take it lightly. It’s not going to come out of our pockets anyway.”

“Oh, yeah. I’ll do that.”

“Those bastards need to get their hands and legs messed up. That’s how you get their act together.”

Kim Tae-yong returned to Ko Byeong-gap and handled the work according to the manual. After he signed the document, Ko Byeong-gap approached the crack.

Four hunters were already preparing for deployment. There was also a manager next to them. Apparently, all of them were hunters in a guild. Three of them were armed with guns, while the other was equipped with a long Hwando [TL: think of a katana].

They only glanced at Ko Byeong-gap and didn’t care much.

“All clear.”

“I’m clear, too.”

The hunters spoke one after another. The woman who appeared to be the manager nodded after recording something.

“Yes, well, please take care of yourself.”

“You look like a D-class. Take care of yourself.”

The hunters entered a crack. Ko Byeong-gap appeared to go in at a whim.

‘Shall I go too?’

He shoved his leg into the crack. That was the moment Ko Byeong-gap felt an extraordinary sense of incompatibility. It felt like he was drowning in a huge sinkhole.

‘The crack is sucking me in!’

Ko Byeong-gap felt the danger and tried to get out quickly, but it was irresistible. Like an ant hill, it was impossible to escape once you dipped your feet.

Fucked. It was the most appropriate word to represent his current feelings. He screamed desperately before being completely sucked into the crack.

“Oh, fuck! This is…!”

His cry ended there.