The Monster Kingdom

I woke up with the first rays of the morning sun. The fact that I had been appointed as the new chief still created a subconscious feeling of astonishment. The events in the goblin village last night had led me down a completely different path.

I stepped out of the tent, still groggy, and surveyed the surroundings. The village was still quiet; I assumed most goblins were still asleep. However, as the new chief, I now had the responsibility of managing a settlement. Thanks to my "Region" ability, I could gather information about the region's status and the resources we possessed.

[Region Name: None]

[Region Inhabitants:

29 Goblins

12 Warrior Goblins

1 Hobgoblin

1 Healer Goblin]

[Region Resources:

Food:

54 Apples

48 Poisonous Mushrooms

6 Dead Rabbits]

As I examined the surroundings more carefully, I noticed that many structures in the village needed repair. Many tents were worn, and some seemed completely destroyed.

"What can I do to improve and strengthen the region?" I wondered.

"Also, calling this place a region doesn't feel right; let's change the name to Monster Kingdom because it sounds cooler that way. And I am the king of monsters, hahahaha! I'm starting to enjoy this job more and more."

Among my new abilities was the "Region" skill, which could provide information about this task. Using this skill, I chose to gather detailed information about the general condition of the settlement and the status of the structures.

[Settlement Status]

1. Tents: 5 units - Many need repair.

2. Fire Pit: Medium-sized fire pit, in good condition.

3. Chief's Tent: Worn, needs repair.

4. Food Storage: 2 units - One completely destroyed, the other worn.

5. Defense Wall: None.

6. Water Source: A river at the edge of the forest.

7. Goblin Abilities: Warrior and Healer goblins have basic skills.

"To improve this situation, I should start by repairing the structures. With the help of goblins, I can accomplish this task more easily."

I took steps towards the tent where the former chief, the healer goblin, rested. I wanted to see if the dagger-wielding goblin was still there. As I entered the tent, I saw the dagger-wielding goblin was still present.

"Hey, you, follow me. We have a few things to do."

The goblin looked at me with suspicion but quietly followed me.

Firstly, I decided to repair the tents in the goblin village. Even with limited materials, with the help of goblins, we managed to repair a few tents. During this process, I taught goblins basic skills and ensured they worked collaboratively. I also informed all goblins that our village's new name is now the "Monster Kingdom," and they seemed to like the name. By the end of the task, the overall atmosphere in the village became livelier.

Next, it was necessary to build a defense wall since the village was quite vulnerable. Although they had surrounded the village with a few makeshift pieces of wood, it could be easily breached in any attack. We started making a simple wall by cutting down some trees at the edge of the forest. While collecting trees, plants, and other items, I gained a skill called "[Examine]." With this skill, I could see what any material was useful for, its type, and even how durable and sturdy it was. The goblins used simple weapons, but they didn't know how to make the necessary tools for craftsmanship. I taught them how to create tools like axes, shovels, and hoes with a bit of string, stones, and sticks. After they made dozens of tools, I gained the "[Creation]" ability, allowing me to create better and more quality items with the materials at hand. The goblins assisted in building the wall, and during this process, my "Leadership" ability allowed me to manage the goblins more effectively.

When the wall was completed, the village felt a bit safer. However, more improvements were needed. I decided to create a health center for the healer goblin to be able to heal injured or sick goblins. Additionally, I thought it would be good for the former chief to have a place where he could sleep alone. Of course, the "Region" ability would assist me in this matter.

[Settlement Status]

1. Health Center: Not built.

"Collecting the necessary materials and building the health center will be the best course of action."

I gathered the goblins, and we headed into the depths of the forest. While collecting food, medicinal herbs, and gathering poisonous plants and mushrooms to prepare antidotes in case of poisoning, I also utilized my trap-setting ability to catch a few rabbits. After collecting the necessary materials for the health center, we returned to the village.

With the improvements made, the goblin village became a bit more peaceful and orderly. Now, the village's defense and health were stronger. However, as the new chief, I needed to be prepared for the challenges that lay ahead.

As I had thought, during this short time spent with the goblins, I had learned many things. Constant hunting and gathering would eventually become a challenge for us. If we wanted to permanently solve the food problem, we needed to dig channels from the riverbeds towards our village and create fields. However, when I talked to the goblins, they mentioned that the riverbeds were dangerous, and they avoided going there unless necessary. When I inquired about the danger, I learned that not far from this village, there was a lizardman village. They lived inside some kind of cave, and they came here for hunting and water because the nearest water source in the region was here. This meant that there would be more animals and plants in this area. I thought it would be the right decision to go and talk to the lizardmen, but there was a high probability that they would show an aggressive attitude. According to what I heard from the goblins, they had fought with them once, and the only one who managed to escape and return home was the dagger-wielding goblin. To make a plan and create an attack team, I went to the dagger-wielding goblin.

"Hey, you, I don't like saying hey to you all the time, so from now on, your name will be Dagger."

Dagger Goblin seemed to have no problem with this name; in other words, he accepted it. It was strange to me that he followed my orders without causing any trouble because I knew he didn't like me. However, I also knew how loyal goblins were to hierarchy, and with the influence of my leadership ability, I could easily make them do what I wanted.

"So let me tell you what I'm planning right now. I want to create an attack team with you as the leader. We have a total of 12 warrior goblins, including you. I'll leave 4 of them and the big guy here to protect the village, and the remaining 8, including you, will form our attack team. I'll go to the lizardman cave beyond the river and try to make a non-aggression agreement with them. If they don't want to make a deal with me, that's when you and the others come into play."

Dagger remained silent for a while, then lifted his head and looked at me with confident eyes.

"Human, chief. Will you really protect the village?"

I knew he still didn't trust me, but I needed him for this task.

"Yes, I will protect it."

"Old chief, my father. You saved him. Repaired our village. I am Dagger, I trust you."

He looked at me with determined eyes. When I learned that the old chief was his father, I understood why he didn't trust me initially and caused many problems.

"Go and gather 7 warrior goblins of your choice. We will set out before the sunset."

Dagger nodded approvingly and went to gather his soldiers. A few minutes later, our attack team was ready, and I decided to call this group Alpha Team. We set out towards the lizardman cave, and I allowed Dagger to lead us along the way since he knew the path best and had survived a battle with them before. Along the way, I also asked him questions about the lizardmen. According to him, they didn't use any tools in battle, but they were significantly larger than goblins, about three times the size, making them powerful and challenging creatures to deal with.

When we reached the entrance of the cave, I saw two lizardmen on guard. I told Dagger that I would go ahead to talk, instructed Alpha Team to stay hidden, and asked them to help me if things went south.

"Hello, I am the chief of the goblin village ahead. I would like to speak with your leader."

The lizardmen looked surprised when they saw me.

"Is a human talking to us?"

At the end of their sentences, they made a strange high-pitched sound, as if every sentence was a question.

"The chief of the goblin village?"

"Goblin? Where are they? Shall we kill and eat them? The last ones we ate were delicious."

"Kill and eat them? So, they are thinking about killing and eating the goblins? Do they not consider talking to me? Do they think they can slaughter my people as they please? I guess we can't resolve this through talking. No, I don't want to resolve it through talking."

I turned around and signaled Dagger to attack with my eyes. The goblins hiding in the bushes emerged, drawing the attention of the lizardmen. What the lizardmen didn't know was that it was just a decoy. Up on the tree branches above the lizardmen, Dagger and another goblin were waiting. As the lizardmen started to approach us to attack, Dagger and the other goblin jumped on them. Dagger managed to kill one lizardman, but the other goblin wasn't as skilled and lucky. The lizardman grabbed the goblin by the neck, held his body and head with both hands, and separated his head from his body. We had already lost one of our soldiers, but I had seen firsthand how powerful the lizardmen were, and this was valuable information for us. There are always losses in wars, and we had to continue the fight without letting our morale break.

"Did you think you could defeat us? You will die!"

The lizardman said these words and ran into the cave. Most likely, he was going to alert his friends, and they would attack us. When I looked into the cave, I saw that it was illuminated with torches and quite narrow. According to my mini-map ability, there were a few lizardmen inside, but I didn't know how many enemies there were in places beyond my reach. However, knowing that they lived in the cave and were some kind of lizard, I had already devised a kind of plan.

"Alpha Team, follow me. We're going inside."

Before coming here, I had taught Dagger and the other goblins how to throw stones, so they could distract the enemies and make sneak attacks. I thought this might come in handy in the cave and in a dark environment. Most lizards don't have night vision, but some do. So, even if these lizards used torches, we weren't sure if they could see in the dark. However, if we wanted to control the river, this was a gamble we had to take. According to my mini-map, there were six lizardmen waiting ahead, and at that moment, a plan came to my mind. I had 18 stat points that I hadn't used before, and I had gained 5 levels in the boss battle, so I should have a total of 28 stat points. I allocated all my points to agility and began to execute my plan.

"Alright, Dagger, Alpha Team. Close your eyes and don't open them until I say."

The goblins in Alpha Team started grumbling, not understanding what I meant, but surprisingly, Dagger was the first to respond.

"Listen to the chief. He's the leader."

I could see that Dagger was becoming a better ally.

"When I give you a signal, open your eyes and attack the lizardmen. You'll have limited time to attack them, so use that time wisely."

After allocating all my stat points to agility, I felt a significant increase in my speed and endurance. All goblins closed their eyes, and I started running to execute my plan. I entered the room where the lizardmen were, dropping and extinguishing all the torches in the room. All the lizardmen were attacking me. Dodging was difficult, but with my current speed, it was not impossible. Once I extinguished all the torches, it would take some time for the lizardmen's eyes to adjust to the darkness. During that time, goblins who had already adapted to the darkness would attack them and catch them off guard.

"ALPHA TEAM, ATTACK!!"

All goblins opened their eyes and started killing the lizardmen without hesitation. I didn't know whether the goblins trusted me or Dagger, but together we managed to kill the lizardmen. After killing all the lizardmen, the goblins began to cheer and celebrate. It was still early to celebrate, but I allowed them to rejoice since they had taken their revenge and defeated a much stronger enemy. Additionally, after killing the lizardmen, I leveled up by 1. When wondering why I had leveled up so little, I realized the situation through notifications from my region ability. Alpha Team couldn't level up because they weren't advanced goblins like healer goblins or Dagger. However, after this battle, I saw that they had turned into advanced goblins, and some of them had even leveled up. I didn't know why or how they turned into advanced goblins, but according to my region ability, experience points were shared with them. This explained why I had only leveled up by 1. We had to cut short our joy of victory because there was a long corridor ahead that we hadn't entered yet, and we started walking through this corridor together. As we approached the end of the corridor, I saw only one living being inside, but it appeared as a "creature" rather than a lizardman, so I had a concern. When we reached the end of the corridor and entered a very large room, I understood why I had that concern. IS THIS A DRAGON?