21 Chapter 20 "Farewell, Fortuna Squad!"
"Fortune Squad!" Ioki shouted.
Suddenly, the sound of leaves and branches crackling could be heard, followed by a bunch of Goblin voices.
The 24 Goblins that made the whole Fortune Squad appeared from the perimeter, they spontaneously got into the formation of 6 rows and 4 columns.
Mr. Kross followed right from behind, leaping straight to Ioki. He licked Ioki's face for a while before Ioki rubbed his belly.
The sadistic-looking executioner is playing innocently with a smile on his face, "Who's the good boy? Who's the good boy?"
After playing with Mr. Kross for a while, his attention got shifted to the organized Goblins before him.
"Ahem, sorry for making you wait. So, as promised from the day before. We would be going on our own separate ways..." Ioki said while looking at the Fortune Squad.
The Goblins have sad expressions on their face. After losing their Chieftain, now they would lose another one? Of course, they would be sad...
Seeing as how some of them were looking down at the ground, and some even shed tears in their big round eyes, Ioki couldn't help but have his heart shaken as well...
Words started to choke on his throat... He can't say the words he wanted to say...
"I---it hurts me more than it hurts you, please... Trust me..." Ioki said with tears in his eyes, "As they say, if you never experience the world with your own body, then how could you call that living?"
"Chief..."
"We are fine living under your command..."
"Yes, chief! Work us to our bones, but please do not abandon us..."
After hearing the last words of that Goblin, Ioki broke down and cried.
"I---I don't want to abandon you... But, I will only stay here in this world for 3 days... If---if... If I am gone after my days here are over, what about you guys?" Ioki tried to explain as he stuttered and choked on his tears.
Some of the Goblins start to wipe their eyes as they see their Chieftain crying before them.
Mr. Kross is trying to calm Ioki down by licking and sniffing his face.
Ioki could only smile and hug Mr. Kross's head.
"The same is going to happen to you, Mr. Kross..." Ioki said as he rubbed the wolf's ears.
Ioki tried to wipe his tears, but his face was still a mess, not even the mask could cover...
The fiery-looking, bloodied leather covering his face couldn't contain his innocence...
After a while, Ioki finally stood up and looked at the Goblin's face. Even the fierce warrior that fought against the strong Players from before could not control their emotions.
"Worry not!" Ioki tried to put a stern voice, "I will provide you guys great equipment, so the Fortune Squad will live up to its name! Hopefully, I would return to this world one day, so we could be reunited once again!"
"Chief Ioki!" The Goblins shouted in unison.
They started to bang their weapons as they shouted Ioki's name.
Ioki then opened his inventory and took out the 2 Warden's Chest.
"Red loot..."
"Woah!"
"Chief Ioki's presents..."
The Goblins stopped crying and crowded Ioki with a curious look on their face.
Ioki sat in the middle with the chests, "Fortune Squad! Lend me your luck!"
As Ioki touched the chests, a blue window popped up.
"Gate of Hell x1, Hell Piercer x1"
Ioki swiped the window and opened another chest.
"Enhanced Luck is in effect!"
"CONGRATULATIONS!
THE AMOUNTS WILL BE DOUBLED!"
"Hell Piercer x2, The Executioner x2, Chaotic Flail x2"
"GODDESS FORTUNA HAS BLESSED THE FORTUNE SQUAD!" Ioki shouted as he raised his fist in the air.
"PRAISE GODDESS FORTUNA!" The Goblins shouted in unison.
Suddenly, a light descended from Heaven; the light enveloped the whole squad for a moment before a gold orb appeared above their heads.
The orb floats between the Goblins playfully, going in between their ranks.
Finally, it made its way toward Ioki before it floated above and popped.
Golden sparkles and glitters came out of the orb like a pinata that had been hit.
Watching all these happen, the Goblins were dumbfounded and had their mouth open. Ioki was no exception, as he wasn't bothered by Mr. Kross's howls when seeing the orb float between them.
Suddenly, a blue window popped up before Ioki, "Goddess Fortuna has blessed the Fortuna Squad.
May the odds be in your favor!"
"The Goddess has blessed us! She has granted us the chance to pave our way to Valhalla!" Ioki shouted without wasting the chance the orb just provided.
"TILL DEATH DO US PART!"
"WE WILL ONLY REST WHEN WE REACH VALHALLA!"
"PRAISE THE GODDESS!"
"LONG LIVE IOKI THE CHIEFTAIN!"
The Goblins chanted louder while raising their weapons in the air with fiery eyes.
After they finished their chants, Ioki distributed the equipment he just received from the chest one by one to the 24 Goblins.
The equipment was distributed as follows:
3 Warden's sets were given each to the one equipping the Gate of Hell, Ragnarok Bringer, and Spear of The Longinus.
The extra Warden's Essence is given to the one equipping the Warden's Set and Gate of Hell.
"The Warden's Essence | Grade: Mythic
Essence of The Warden.
Upon consuming: +15 Str, + 15 Con, Fiery Retaliation (Passive)."
The rest of the equipment was distributed evenly towards the Goblins based on their own preferences.
They have their eyes glued to their newly equipped weapons.
Not long after, a ruckus could be heard coming from the ranks. Two Goblins were fighting for a weapon...
"Let go!"
"You let go!"
"I got it first!"
"I had my eyes on it first!"
The two Goblins fought over the Surtr's Twinsword. A crimson longsword resembling a spear with two sharp azure tips on each end, the handle in the middle is designed to give the user a perfect grip.
While they were fighting, Ioki could feel something pulling his cloak.
"Chief... I didn't get any weapon..." A Goblin said with a sad expression as he held onto Ioki's cloak.
While Ioki was lost because he miscalculated the Fortuna Squad size and the equipment numbers, the fight between the two Goblins got more heated.
The other Goblins cheered on them instead of trying to stop them.
"Wait a minute... Let me take care of them first," Ioki said as he approached the two Goblins.
As they got into a heated argument and started throwing punches, they never let go of the Twinsword in their hand.
Suddenly, the Twinsword was divided in two as the other one pulled it with all his might.
Upon seeing that happened, Ioki approached them and took their weapons.
Ioki tried to put the two together, then pulled it, put it together, then pulled it again.
"GODDESS FORTUNA HAVE ANSWERED OUR PRAYERS!" He raised the once Surtr's Twinsword.
He gave them the sword back, "Look, this means that the Goddess wants the both of you to work together! Put your difference aside, fight till you knock the Valhalla's Gate together!"
The two Goblins that just fought then shake hands.
Ioki approached the other one with the Surtr's Twinsword and divided it in two as well, giving the Goblin without equipment the other half of it as he pats it on the head.
The Goblin that just received the Surtr's sword was smiling from cheek to cheek while jumping around.
"Now, line up! I want to see your formation one last time before we parted ways!" Ioki said proudly.
While the Goblins were heavy with their steps when Ioki said so, they had no choice but to get information.
Their once neat formation is now chaotic as they are equipping new weapons.
"Look at this! How can we meet again if you can't even think for yourself... Your older formation is now obsolete! You have new weapons! Work around it!" Ioki shouted.
The Goblins were, of course, confused. They tried to change their positions, but they simply didn't know what to do...
"Hah... Okay, listen up!" Ioki asked for their attention by raising his hand.
"The one with the Gate of Hell shield, you three stand in front!" Ioki commanded them.
Three Goblins moved forward; they carried a towering dark shield with red stripes and an engraving of the skull in the middle of it.
"You in particular!" Ioki pointed at the Goblin with Warden's Set, "You will be the commander of Fortuna Squad from now on! You will be in charge when I'm gone, okay?"
"Yes, Chief!" The Goblin looked at Ioki and nodded.
"Good! Now, the one with Ragnarok Bringer axe, the two of you stand behind the other two Goblins with shields, so when the clash started, you could break off from the formation and go berserk on the battlefield, understood?"
The two Goblins with an axe in their hand nodded.
"Next one! The four Goblins with swords!" Ioki pointed at the Goblins equipping the Surtr's Sword, "The four of you will stand behind the shield bringer and between the Goblins with axes, okay?"
They nodded.
"So when they broke off from the formation, your job would be to alternatively attack the opponent the one in front of you is holding back. If you have fought with the spears before, then more or less, it would be the same strategy. Ask the ones that used a spear before for more tips if you don't know what to do with it."
The four nodded again.
"Good! Next, the two with Spear of The Longinus!"
Two Goblins come forward with a golden spear and a torn white cloth on its tip.
"Hopefully, the two of you are used to spear!" Ioki shouted.
"Yes, Chief!"
"We were the best with spear!" They replied.
The other Goblins nodded when they heard their replies. Seeing this made Ioki fully believe in what they just said.
"Excellent! Both of you will stand right behind the ones with the sword. Your job would be the same as before; alternatively provide attacks from behind the shield if you see the chance to do so!"
The two nodded.
"This time around, the two of you need to pay attention to your sides and rear as well because you will be responsible for helping the backline by giving them backups once in a while, but your main priority is as follows: enemies in front, enemies that made it past through the front line, then finally the rear, understood?" Ioki asked them.
"Yes, Chief!" They replied in unison.
"Great! The next one would be the four with Chaotic Flail!" Ioki shouted.
Four of the Goblins with a dark flail came forward, dragging their thorny flail on the ground.
"Your position is going to be tricky; I'm not gonna sugarcoat it to you. Your job is the hardest! You would be responsible for killing the enemies that passed through the formation!" Ioki said with a stern expression, "If given the chance, then feel free to adjust your position slightly and attack the enemies in front of the line. Be sure to attack with a tempo! Communication is the key, so your flail doesn't get tangled with the ones beside you!"
"Make use of your range, although it's not as far as the spear and the whip, but still, if it hits, then your weapon will be the one that tore the chunk of flesh from your enemies!" Ioki explained as he approached their formation and gave them some examples.
"I hope all of you understand how crucial your roles are and how your comrades would be thankful for you if they lived another day," Ioki said as he put his hand on some of their shoulders.
The Goblins with Chaotic Flair had the look of determination in their eyes as they shouted, "Yes, Chief!"
"Now, the four with the whip. Please stand behind them," Ioki pointed at the row of the flail and spear-equipped Goblins.
Four Goblins with the uncanny thorny whip lined up behind them.
"Using the whip is gonna be difficult... But when did you master it? You will be controlling the tides of battles! Every time the sound of whipping could be heard, it was already too late for the enemies to dodge," Ioki looked at them in the eyes.
"Give life to them! Let them dance and flow on the battlefield! You are the maestro, and the opponent is the instrument!" Ioki looked them dead in the eye.
The Goblins gulped before shouting, "Yes, Chief!"
"Good! Finally... The five of you will stand behind them," Ioki pointed at the Goblin's left.
They are holding a crossbow made out of bright red wood, engravings of other bizarre lines could be seen along the crossbow's body, and the most bizarre of all is the head of the sight is a dark mini skull.
"Your bolts will be the sign of the start of the battle! Every bolt counts! Make sure every time you pull that trigger, an enemy's skull is pierced, capiche?" Ioki blinked at them, "Remember this. One shot, one kill!"
"One shot, One kill, Chief!" The Goblins with crossbow replied.
As they got into their new formation, Ioki returned to his position at the front of them.
Seeing the dark and red equipment lining up neatly made him proud.
He slowly walked to each of the Goblins and hugged them tight. While they all looked terrifying from afar, they had soft hearts for their loved ones...
Ioki couldn't help himself but cried as he hugged them one by one; some of the Goblins dropped their weapon and cried as well.
Finally, Mr. Kross... He was seen with his tail down, whimpering like their first fateful encounter...
"I... I'm sorry, Mr. Kross... This is for your best," Ioki said with teary eyes...
Ioki hugged him tight while crouching down. A lick on his cheek could be felt, and Ioki returned it with a kiss on Mr. Kross' cheek.
As Ioki stood back up, he looked at the Fortune Squad one last time.
"Till we meet again, Fortune Squad!" Ioki said his goodbye.
Ioki turned his back and didn't look back as he walked away from them.
"LET THE VOICE OF OUR BATTLES REACH YOUR EARS!"
"WE WILL NOT PUT OUR WEAPON DOWN TILL WE KNOCK ON VALHALLA'S GATE WITH YOU!"
"LONG LIVE IOKI THE WISE ONE!"
Their chants could be heard as loud as ever; the morning creatures of the forest shut their mouths out of respect when hearing their chants.
"AWOOOOOOOO!" Howl could heard between their chants.
Ioki raised his hand and waved them goodbye while walking forward. Even though his vision is blurry, their future is bright.
"Your fate has intertwined with the Fortune Squad."
