Coming up with a Plan

"You've got guts, human," the ogre growled. "Summoning me like this. What do you want?"

Lance gave a polite nod. "I wanted to discuss our arrangement. We're working on gathering the supplies you need, but it's taking longer than expected. We're a small tribe, after all."

The ogre crossed his massive arms, his gaze narrowing. "You're stalling."

"I'm being honest," Lance countered, keeping his voice steady. "If you take from us now, you'll get less than what we promised. But if you give us a little more time, we can provide exactly what you asked for."

The ogre leader's expression darkened, and Lance felt a bead of sweat roll down his back. He pushed forward before the giant of an ogre could respond.

"Think about it," Lance said quickly. "You're mercenaries. You're not looking for a fight, you're looking for profit."

"Telling me what I want and what to do. I look stupid to you, human?" The ogre growled in a low tone.

"Not at all… that would be foolish of me. All I'm saying is that attacking us now would be a waste of resources. But waiting? That guarantees a bigger haul."

The ogre leader studied Lance for a long moment, his scarred face unreadable. Finally, he let out a low chuckle.

"You've got a silver tongue, human," he said. "Fine. I'll give you a few more days. But if you try to cheat me…" He leaned in, his voice dropping to a menacing growl. "I'll burn your little camp to the ground, and slaughter every single one of your green friends, and I'll be sure you watch the entire thing from the best viewpoint."

Lance nodded, his expression serious. "Understood." He could feel an unnatural feeling that came from the ogre, and it sent a terrible feeling down his heart and bowels. The others who stood behind him were no different.

…

After returning to the goblin camp, the tension had only grown. As Lance explained his plan to delay the ogres while preparing an ambush, he could feel the skepticism radiating from the gathered goblins.

"You're asking us to trust that they'll actually wait?" Rikka said, her voice sharp. "What if they attack anyway?"

"They won't," Lance said confidently, though in his heart there were some doubts. Even then, he couldn't say that as the leader, not to demoralize the rest. "They've got nothing to gain by rushing in. So, we have only a few days to get ready, and we'll use every second of it."

"Even if they wait," Zarra said, her tone measured, "what makes you think we can win? They're stronger, bigger, better armed."

Lance took a deep breath. "Because I believe we're smarter. We'll use traps, ambushes, and the terrain to our advantage, as always. Our major advantage, however, is the fact that the ogres think we're weak, that is what we'll use against them."

The goblins exchanged uneasy glances, their murmurs filling the air.

"Lance is right," Lia said, stepping forward, her calm, steady voice silencing the crowd. "We've trusted him this far, and he hasn't led us wrong. We owe him the chance to see this through."

Her words seemed to settle the tribe, though the unease didn't entirely dissipate.

Lance didn't expect to be doubted like that, but in the end, it was only natural, and he understood it, even humans doubt human leaders.

The preparations began immediately.

Zarra and the scouts studied the mapped out locations they had made use of in the past, including choke points and ambush sites. Kaeli crafted crude but effective weapons and reinforced the traps they'd built during the previous attack.

Mira brought a team of goblins with her to gathered herbs to make poultices and salves, ensuring the tribe would be ready to treat any injuries.

Lance moved between groups, coordinating their efforts and offering encouragement. He could see the doubt in their eyes, but he also saw determination, a flicker of hope that they could survive this.

Their preparations continued in that fashion, and as for the new traps, they made sure they were deadlier and even more spread out in unexpected locations.

Just like that, two days went by quickly in the blink of an eye. Lance returned to the ogre camp, this time alone. He carried a small bundle of supplies as a gesture of goodwill, hoping it would be enough to buy them more time.

The ogre leader greeted him with a sneer. "You're cutting it close, human."

"I brought this as a show of progress," Lance said, handing over the bundle. "It's not much, but it proves we're working on your request."

The ogre inspected the supplies, a mix of dried meat, mushrooms and other fruits, and crude tools. After going through, he grunted in approval.

"You've got one more day," he said. "After that, we take what we want."

"Understood," Lance said, bowing slightly.

He felt a little disgusted having to act so weak in front of his enemies, but that was the reality, that he was weak, and so were his people, the goblins. Even though they would outperform him any day, in the face of true strength, it didn't mean much. Rynne, Zarra and Rikka alone would scarcely be enough to face an entire group of Ogres.

As Lance made his way back to the goblin camp, his mind raced with plans. The ogres had taken the bait, but the clock was ticking. If the ambush failed, the tribe wouldn't survive another attack, since they'd all be dead.

Lance grew resolute, 'my new life just begun, I can't die now.'