Chapter 8: Hob-goblin

Another ten days went by in a flash. The child was once again so absorbed in his goblin development plan that he had forgotten the time that had gone by.

But the time that passed was not wasted. Finally, after hours of no rest and constant change in the goblin core, he had finally done it. The reproductive parts of the new goblin were complete.

"I guess I should stop merely calling it the "new' goblin. After all, with a mature reproductive system, it can now be considered a species of its own."

Just like how a monkey and a human cannot be considered the same type of creature, the child did not want to just call his new goblin "goblin.' A proper name felt fitting and would separate it from the other goblins.

"But then again, this new form of goblin is still somewhat connected to the original goblin."

In scientific terms, a species is a group of creatures that can reproduce with each other and produce fertile offspring. So creatures that cannot reproduce with each other could not be considered to be of the same species.

But the new form of goblin can reproduce with normal goblins. This was something done intentionally by the child. When he thought about how he would have to create at least two new goblins in order to start the army-making process, he felt the idea was a bit wasteful. The new goblin used about four times more third-order energy than the usual goblin. So if he were to try and make five new goblins like before, that same amount of energy could be used to make 25 normal goblins. And clearly, the child did not have that much energy.

So the child thought to lessen the energy cost and multiply the yield. How? The child gave a simple answer: "Let's make it such that the new goblins can mate with the normal goblins.

Once that was possible, he would only need one male new goblin and a few female normal goblins. He would make the new goblin impregnate the normal goblins, but what would come out wouldn't be the normal goblins but new goblins. Thus creating new goblins without using too much energy.

The process of connecting the two species was not easy, which is why the child took so long. Otherwise, with the external structure already made, it would not be hard to change the reproductive organs to match their physical structure.

"Because of this, the new goblins cannot be considered an entirely different species. They could be thought of as variants at best. But still, calling them new goblins doesn't sound right. A new name isn't fitting either. So how about I call them hob-goblins? "It shows that they are still goblins but still different as well."

Just like that, the new goblin was named.

With his goblin development project complete, the child could finally shift his ever-focused gaze towards the five goblins. The first male goblin was having a great time playing with the three new female goblins. Although they were also pregnant, it had yet to show externally, so they could still 'battle' with the male goblin all day without a problem. The first female goblin, on the other hand, was already showing signs externally. It had a big bulge on its stomach and started to drink more water frequently. The goblin was no longer enthusiastic about the 'battles' with the male goblin.

The male goblin, on the other hand, did not care. After all, it still had three more goblins to play with. It was still enjoying harem life. Little did it know that its harem life was now in jeopardy.

That day, the nebula of stars and particles within the dungeon core suddenly spun. The goblins watched this but did not react much. Over the few days that have passed, the dungeon core has always flashed when the child is improving the goblin core. So the goblins were already used to color changes and flashes.

But the male goblin suddenly noticed a difference. As it was the first goblin made, it had experienced the creation of all the current goblins other than itself. So it was already able to distinguish the difference when the dungeon core activated. As such, it was able to know what was clearly happening.

A new harem member!

And it seems that the goblin was right, as within the dungeon core, a hint of blurry green could be seen. signaling the formation of the green goblin skin. Not long after, the goblin was complete. Just like how the other goblins were born, the new goblin fell from the dungeon core.

splat!

The goblin fell into the small pond of glowing gold water. Seeing that its future harem member had fallen into the water, the goblin male ran off towards the water.

The new goblin had luckily not drowned, so it soon came out of the water. To the surprise of every goblin in the cave, the new goblin was much larger than they were. Every goblin was confused, but the male goblin was more confused than the others. What it was confused about was not just the size of the new goblin, though. But it was instead the 'tools' the new goblin was packing.

"huh?"

The male goblin stepped back in surprise. Up until now, only it had such tools. Because there was no one other than itself like that, it believed that it was special. But now there was another.

Out of instinct, the goblin immediately developed a dislike for the new hobgoblin. It made unintelligible sounds of warning towards the hobgoblin. The hobgoblin was confused. Not knowing why it was being screamed at, but it still did not want to be bested. Especially so by something much smaller than itself. So it grunted back at the male goblin.

Seeing the large stature of the hobgoblin, the goblin felt a little afraid. The female goblins also grew more fearful the more they looked at the hobgoblin. It was very different from them after all. So they instinctively felt xenophobic. Standing up, they backed up their mate and growled at the newcomer together.

In the end, the hobgoblin stepped back. Confused as to why it was being taken away. After all, it had yet to see itself in a mirror. As is current, it believed itself to be a goblin no different from the rest. Although the child had changed its physical structure, he had not changed its inherent knowledge.

Seeing the hobgoblin step back, the male goblin felt proud of itself. It howled louder than before as it grew excited. With the foreigner gone, it was thus the end of that.

But their creator had other plans, so something else happened. The inside of the dungeon core once again spun. The nebulous stars formed a core, and a new goblin was made. It, too, was dumped into the water. When it got out of the water, the goblin was fully revealed.

Just like the first few goblins, this one was short and less muscular. And to the male goblin's happiness, it did not have any special 'tools," meaning that this goblin was going to join it for 'battle practice.'

But something that it did not like happened. The hobgoblin approached the new female goblin. The male goblin was livid; it made grunts and screams, trying to chase the hobgoblin away. But alas, no matter how much it screamed, the hobgoblin did not move.

Just like once, the hobgoblin was overcome by an urge. An urge to take this female goblin as its own. It did not know why, but it felt like it should not let the female goblin out of its sight.

Seeing the hobgoblin not responding, the male goblin grew angry. But deep down, a fear of the hobgoblin told it not to do anything. It thus walked down and called out to the new female goblin. I was hoping it could come over on its own. But the new female goblin didn't even turn to its call. It only stared at the hobgoblin as if entranced.

The new goblin thus sat down with the hobgoblin.

For a while, it seemed like the end of it, but the child was not done. A few hours later, another goblin was made. Just like before, it was female. When the hobgoblin walked over to it, the male goblin was infuriated. It screamed like crazy and threw dust at the hobgoblin. After all, a man shall not be duped twice!

The hobgoblin was not happy; it thus looked over to the male goblin.

...