Pal Lord: A Different Kingdom Building

Dirty, muddy, foul-smelling…

Pino stirred groggily, his body aching, with the exception of his rear, which had escaped any injury—a small blessing in this sea of misfortune.

"No! No! Help me!!! Aahhh!!!"

A piercing scream shattered the silence, fully rousing Pino from his stupor. He sat up hurriedly, scanning his surroundings. He found himself locked in a cage tightly woven from bones and vines, one among many similar cages. Most were empty, but a few still contained prisoners. The scream he had heard earlier belonged to a human, dragged away by two burly goblins. The poor soul had clutched the bars of Pino's cage with both hands, his fingers straining, nearly bursting with muscle, refusing to let go.

"Don't eat me... I'm not tasty... Eat this one, the tender flesh... He's much tastier!"

"Dammit!" Pino kicked hard at the man's hand, snapping his fingers with brutal force, until he finally released his grip. The man left a trail of deep scratches on the ground, still cursing. "Ahhh... You'll pay for this..."

Two goblins lifted the human's limp body and tossed him into a large clay pot, where fierce flames roared beneath. The pot's contents boiled violently.

At first, the human in the pot still struggled, his screams sending a chill down the spines of all the other captives. But soon, two goblins with spears plunged their weapons into the boiling water, and the water quickly turned a crimson red as blood stained the surface. The surrounding goblins, eagerly awaiting their feast, danced around with gleeful yelps of "Okaka! Okaka!"

"Gods... Are they really going to eat him?" Pino's eyes nearly bulged out of his head. He had heard rumors that not all goblins practiced cannibalism, but the evidence before him was undeniable.

"Then why else would they be capturing people... unless they fancy your ass... Damn, this is my first time out trading, and look what happens…" The young man in the cage next to Pino sobbed, wiping his tears away.

"So it's you people who go into the Hidden Forest to trade?" Pino glanced at the disheveled young man in his dirty shirt and immediately felt his anger flare. "Damn you! If it weren't for wanting to take advantage of your trade route, I wouldn't have been caught!"

"I... I just wanted to open a trade route no one else thought of... I heard there were elven tribes in these woods... I thought I'd come trade with them... I never expected to run into these green-eared monsters…" The young man's tears flowed freely.

"Brilliant, just brilliant! When those before you failed, it was a dead end!" Pino gave him a sarcastic thumbs-up. "Did you ever stop to wonder why no one else trades here?"

"Jack, look! Look! These monsters are going to eat Dasa!" A human prisoner from another cage screamed in terror.

Turning around, Pino saw the goblins eagerly scrambling to fetch the half-cooked human. Their bloated, pale bodies were an unsettling sight that made him want to vomit.

"Ah… Dasa, you died a terrible death… May your spirit watch over me and keep me safe. I'll make sure to take care of your wife and children when I return…" The young merchant, Jack, cried bitterly.

"Okaka! Okaka!" The goblins, clearly hierarchical in nature, lifted the cooked meat and handed it to a massive goblin with a mighty build.

The large goblin squinted, holding the thigh, sniffed it, chewed without chewing, and then tossed it into his mouth, swallowing it in one gulp. The other goblins cheered and began drinking the broth and eating the scraps.

[Elite Goblin Chieftain Strongswallow]

[Level: 15]

[Attack: 80-100]

[Armor: 30]

[A powerful goblin evolution, with ogre blood running through its veins. Its appetite and strength are equally formidable; its bottomless stomach allows it to devour human flesh without the need to chew.]

"Phew... So it's a goblin with ogre blood. I thought such a large body meant it was the Goblin King!" Pino let out a breath of relief.

In truth, a goblin with ogre blood and a Goblin King were entirely different beings—one was defined by bloodline and genetics, the other by sheer power. A creature of such a small size as a goblin could never have the same giant frame as an ogre hybrid. If anything, it had to be said that goblins were driven by an overwhelming desire to mate. They didn't care if the partner was female, a different species, or even a plant—hell, even a chimney would suffice, as long as there was a hole to satisfy their urges. This bizarre genetic ability allowed them to reproduce with almost any female organism.

It was said that the pointed ears of goblins today were the result of elven bloodlines… though such unofficial tales were best kept to private conversations. Mentioning this in front of elves would quickly result in their wrath, and they'd stop at nothing to make you regret it. So, never doubt the peculiarities of any goblin subspecies. With enough courage, even a dragon-blooded goblin could emerge.

"What's the difference, though... Aren't they all just going to eat us in the end?" Merchant Jack wiped his tears with a sorrowful expression.

"The difference is huge," Pino replied, looking knowledgeable. "Goblins are a species that craves strength. They love to form tribes around strong leaders. A hero species can attract a thousand goblins, while a king species might have over ten thousand under their command. If this one's just an elite, that means this tribe probably has only a hundred members."

"You're... a biologist?" Jack looked at Pino with some doubt.

"Oh, I'm just a wandering poet. But I read a lot of street novels. One, called Goblin and the Elven Princess, an alternative novel, makes a killing when I perform interpretations for my audience…" Pino smiled gracefully, not at all flustered. He was confident that the Cat Team would come soon. With his guidance, escaping would be a simple matter.

"Oh... esteemed poet, is your confidence because you have a way to escape this dreadful place?" Jack asked, his face nearly pressed against the bone cage, filled with excitement.

"Of course, it won't take long. My servants will find their way here soon. So, what do you say, merchant friend? Would you rather buy your life?" Pino grinned wickedly.

"Yes, yes, yes! Please, sir! As long as you can save me, I'll give you... 100 gold coins... No, wait! 200 gold coins as a reward!" Jack shook the cage in his excitement.

"Hey! Aren't you being a little stingy? I can see your emblem—you're from the richest guild on the continent, the Fertile Fields Trade Association. Your life is only worth 200 gold coins?" Pino said, his mood darkening.

"Oh, please... Well-traveled poet, you're right. I am from Fertile Fields, but I'm just a newly graduated merchant apprentice, undergoing an evaluation for independent trade…" Jack sighed. "Each apprentice only receives an initial capital of 10,000 gold coins. After a year, depending on how much we've earned, we get to determine whether we qualify to become a trade caravan leader... I've already gambled all my funds into this caravan... I really don't have more money to offer... But if you'll accept an IOU, once I turn my fortune around, I'll pay you ten times that amount." Jack's expression was filled with desperation.

"Enough, you're a gambling fool who dares to trade in the forest!? Do you think I believe you can turn things around? Pay up!" Pino, at this moment, was still thinking about the gold coins.

Jack winced, clearly pained. If only he had spent those 200 gold coins to hire guards... maybe none of this would have happened. With a heavy sigh, he reached into his pants pocket, digging for a long time before finally pulling out a small pouch of gold. Reluctantly, he handed it to Pino, but his grip tightened, unwilling to let go.

"Well, look at that. Great minds think alike," Pino said, attempting to snatch the pouch.

"Heh heh... In these troubled times... for safety's sake…" Jack chuckled nervously, clutching the pouch tighter. "You will rescue me, won't you?"

"Don't worry! Of course, I will!" Pino grabbed the pouch with determination, almost pressing it to his face to savor the warmth of the gold.

"When does the plan begin? That ogre-goblin… it's already preparing for its fourth meal of the day," Jack said, shivering.

"Fourth meal? How many meals does it eat a day?" Pino asked, shocked.

"Sixteen meals…"