2 The Goblin's ambush

The Green skins were the most common humanoid race found in the Solana Greenlands, this green skins consist of a tapestry of tribes and clans. These are the cunning goblins, who only brings mischief, the disciplined hobgoblins, forging order amidst chaos, the fierce orcs, embodying brute strength and ferocity, and the colossal ogres, guardians of their kin.

They once had a massive population that stretched across the Solana Greenlands to the Tierra Range. During the many years the kingdom was at war with other kingdoms, the green skins had taken advantage of the situation and invaded the kingdom's northern lands. They remained a solid threat to the kingdom for nearly three years.

They were considered as a disgusting inflammation that seemed to spread all the way to the central regions.

When the Kingdom of Cailux was done warring against the other kingdoms, they immediately sought to purge the green skins from their lands.

The massive purge lasted for a year.

The Green skins Tribes, which behaved as if they had reached paradise when they first invaded the kingdom, were quickly crushed by the retaliation.

The Green skins had no high-grade weapons or armor, which meant that they were no match for the human forces. The humans also have many wizards and knights who can use aura.

The Goblins and Hobgoblins were easily killed by the cavalry units, which were highly regarded by the Kingdom of and a source of great pride, while the Orcs and Ogres only suffer a little in that war.

It was said that the number of chopped Goblins and Hobgoblins heads 10 years ago was enough to line both sides of the road.

The brutal purge quickly spiraled to become an all-out genocide, stretching from the northern border of the kingdom into the southern parts of the Solana. The main Goblin and Hobgoblin Tribes, which had greater numbers, almost became extinct from the genocide.

Any surviving Goblin and Hobgoblin Tribes moved into the mountains in the north of the kingdom in fear.

There were still some scattered pockets of them left.

There were quite a number of Goblin Tribes within the Tierra Range, which was evident from how the northern villages of the kingdom were sporadically raided by goblins.

As for the southern parts of the Solana Greenlands, the Goblin and Hobgoblin numbers likely spiked from having gained a 10-year respite.

There's no going back now.

Leon wetted his parched, cracked lips. His expression was filled with resolve.

He was determined to build his village after making the arduous journey through this forest. With the system's Clash of Clans as his cheat, he was determined not to fall into a state of having absolutely nothing.

The lake that has a waterfall, which were recently discussed, were right in front of them. That was where they were about to set up camp.

The plan was to set up tents in the shade behind the trees at the lake.

"Alright, you people, get busy!"

The knights were still under Carlos's command. He went on to carry out his arrangements for them. "Search the perimeter thoroughly. I don't want any goblins or beast chewing up my innards while I'm asleep!"

The 15 knights immediately spread out after receiving his orders.

However, some hardly bothered with the task they had been given. They had been marching for nine days and not seen any goblins around.

As such, the knights were not very thorough with their search. After confirming that there was nothing out of the ordinary within the vicinity of the lake, they all returned to set up tents so they could get some much-needed rest.

"Get the tents up."

Leon arranged for the barbarians to get to work as well.

The three carriages included supplies to set up camp. There were more than a dozen tents, as well as sticks and ropes for erecting them.

The barbarians, a formidable group with wild hair and sturdy builds, nodded in unison, responding, "Yes, my lord!" With swift efficiency, they began erecting tents, their skilled hands weaving through the canvas and sticks.

Some of the barbarians were carefully lighting a purple candle outside each tent.

This was one of the tricks of living in the magical forest of this world. These candles keep the Stingbloods at bay. The Stingbloods are mosquitoes that was mutated because of the demonic energy that the demons used. Many adventurers has lost too many to those cursed mosquitoes in these parts.

This candles were made by an alchemist in the central region, the purple light that it produce can ward them off.

Before Leon ventured into the mountains, he had looked up all kinds of books on the Solana Greenlands and thoroughly read them gaining knowledge that was useful to him.

Twenty tents were set up. The tents were erected with sticks and fixed in place with ropes. All 47 people in the entourage were able to have a good rest within the camp, as well as the 23 horses.

"I'll leave the rest to you, Carlos."

Leon stood before his small tent and sighed a breath of relief.

The hardest part of the work needed to set up camp had been completed. Carlos nodded in reply. "Yes, Your Lordship."

The work after required feeding and watering the horses. People were also assigned to prepare lunch and distribute water throughout the day to everyone present. While the job was relatively easy, it had to be taken seriously. No one was better suited for the job than Carlos, who was careful and steadfast.

The tents blocked the sun, and the shallow holes brought coolness from the earth.

Leon spread out a linen sheet and laid down. He felt as if all the exhaustion from the difficult journey was disappearing.

'It might actually be best to have a pint of lager at such a moment.' He thought.

Leon closed his eyes and sighed. "I wonder when I can start living easily again."

He was, at the moment, at the stage of starting from scratch.

Lager was basically a luxury at such times. There was no way he could have drunk some anyway. No trade caravans traveled to the Ruins of the Solace Kingdom to sell cheap liquor to their fief.

After all, they were in the Solana Greenlands.

It was a forested area where no humans were usually found and only smelly green skins can be seen.

Leon Shook his head and stopped thinking about it.

He sniffed for a bit and smelled the fragrance of food from outside the tent.

It was lunchtime. Just as Leon settled onto his mat within the confines of the tent, a sudden rustle of feathers drew his attention. The tent flap parted, and a majestic eagle with sleek, silver-tipped wings entered, emitting a distinctive chirp. Recognizing it as his swift eagle, Leon's eyes lit up.

"Come, my friend," he beckoned, extending his arm. The swift eagle gracefully descended, landing on his shoulder, and nuzzled against him. A bond forged through a blood contract and years of companionship.

In the silence between them, the eagle transmitted a message directly to Leon's mind.

{Master, danger approaches. Goblins skulk in the shadows, plotting an ambush on the camp. Be vigilant.}

Leon's expression hardened as he absorbed the information. "Thank you, Cid," he whispered, patting the eagle's feathers. This information did verify something important.

There was a group of goblins with unknown numbers preparing for an ambush around the vicinity where they were camping. Furthermore, the goblins had found them and were ready to strike at any moment.

We've been careless!

Leon was exasperated by the knights' inability to properly scout. Given how he had no command over them, there was no way he could have given them orders.

He swiftly walked out of his tent. There were more than a 10 barbarians who's still preparing lunch outside.

As for the knights assigned by the dukedom to escort them, they were all burrowed in their tents. There was not so much as a scout found anywhere outside of the tents. They had very much let their guards down.

Leon frowned hard at the situation.

If it had not been for the Cid, those goblins would have probably gotten right beside the tents and remained unseen.

He did not make a big deal out of it.

Leon came to the side of the carriage and found his box.

Within it were a sword that was specially crafted for him.

He needed to be the one who discovered the goblins. Otherwise, there was no way he could explain how he knew the goblins were about to attack. Despite being a prince he was restricted from making any actions back in the kingdom, he is also not allowed to have a beast companion back then so the knights certainly doesn't know Cid and may not believe him.

Along with three Barbarians, he swiftly walked to the top of the roaring waterfall beside the tranquil lake. The sound of rushing water masked their approach as they surveyed the landscape below.

Leon peered over the edge, his sharp eyes scanning the dense foliage. "There, my lord," one of the barbarians noticed them first and pointed. He continued to speak as he pointed northward, "Look, Goblins. Many of them."

"Yeah." Leon nodded.

Approximately half of a mile north of the lake where they were camping, they were about 40 Goblins wearing ragged clothing and snooping about in a small clearing. The clearing was located in the middle of a densely grown rainforest. It was a rare and precious spot.

"Fall back. Wake everyone up and prepare for combat."

Leon slowly backed away while remaining in a squatting position. Although he still looked very serious, his expression had considerably lightened.

From the looks of it, more than 40 goblins seemed like a lot. They were almost equal to Leon's entourage.

In actual fact, they were not all that much of a threat.

All 15 of the dukedom's knights, who were still resting in their tents, would have been able to quickly take care of the goblins. Furthermore, they would have done so without incurring huge losses.

Seasoned knights with ample training could have easily dealt with those primitive humanoid races especially those knights who can use Aura.

Leon quickly ran down the top of the waterfall as he held onto his sword. He said, "Captain Carlos, we're in trouble. Please get everyone to prepare for combat. About 40 goblins are about to ambush our camp."

"Goblins"

Captain Carlos sounded rather surprised.

The 15 knights in their tents quickly grabbed their weapons and emerged with stern expressions. When they scanned the surrounding area, they did not find anything out of the ordinary.

Carlos did not doubt Leon and asked, "Your Lordship, where are they?"

"Over there, and they'll hit us real soon," Leon said as he pointed north of the lake.

"Get on your horses and get ready to fight."

Carlos gritted his teeth and glared at the knights behind him. He quickly berated them. "Damn it, you four will spend the night polishing everyone's boots. I told you to scout the area, yet you missed that many goblins out there."

The four knights looked glum, but they did not retort.

It had truly been their mistake. The four of them were tasked with scouting to the north.

"Your Lordship, I apologize for the matter, but we will deal with the goblins."

Carlos led the knights to mount their horses. They all took their lances and longswords along. He turned to Leon and seriously said, "We will all deploy, so we probably will not be able to cover for you. Please be careful, Your Lordship."

"No problem." Leon nodded.

The knights were never meant for defense. They would head out and hit the goblins head-on.

Once an ambush was discovered, the element of surprise was gone.

Seeing the 15 knights, led by Carlos, quickly head to the north, Leon gave his orders. "Everyone, prepare for combat. Follow my lead."

"Understood!"

The 30 Barbarians unanimously responded.

Even though the Barbarians job right now was a servant, they were no strangers to combat, they even like fighting.

The barbarians grabbed their weapons in the carriages and readied.

Leon took the Barbarians to follow the knights.

Approximately 650 feet away, the 15 kingdom knights were thrusting their lances, which were over 6 feet long, and charging without fear at the ragtag band of goblins.

"Glory to the Kingdom of Cailux!"

The knights shouted their motto as the warhorses beneath them galloped at high speeds.

The charge of the knights caught the goblins by surprise.

The goblins were the dominant beings in the Solana Greenlands. That emboldened them enough to sneak up to the place where they smelled something nice, even though they had no idea who they would be up against.

When they saw the ones charging down the dunes were human knights, all of them began to scatter in fear.

The slaughter from 10 years ago was still fresh in their memories.