Gi Gu Verbena endured and endured, and it wasn’t until two days after being attacked by the Order of the Blue Knights that he was able to rendezvous with the king. They had to move while being wary of their surroundings, so they were slower than usual. The Goblin King warmly greeted Gi Gu as he rendezvoused with them with many wounded in tow.
“You did well coming here safely. You must have suffered greatly.”
The Goblin King personally greeted Gi Gu and awarded his efforts with two days of rest.
“Your Majesty, I have no excuse for Felduk’s failure to capture Pena…”
Gi Gu grit his teeth in shame as he said those words, but the king spoke to him gently.
“Oh Gi Gu. Pena is a strong enemy. You did well. Just being able to bring back these many soldiers alive is sufficient. Our entire army shall take care of the rest and force Pena to capitulate.”
After the Goblin King eased Gi Gu’s heart, Gi Gu bowed to him deeply, then the Goblin King received Pale’s report regarding the damages incurred.
“Although not many of Gi Ga Rax’s Aransain died, many of them have been wounded. Gi Gu-dono’s Felduk is in a similar state.”
“It is good that not many have died.”
“Yes. But I never thought Pena would be able to resist this much. This failure is my fault.”
Based on the difference in equipment of the army that attacked Gi Ga and Gi Gu, the goblins believe that the enemy might have two different platoons. One supporting reason behind this is that Allen did not appear in the frontlines when fighting Gi Gu. It could be said that the presence of an army with a commander that was so remarkable has led the goblins to make an error in judgment.
Even Pale herself had a hard time guessing the enemy’s real numbers, as the spies she sent to Pena only reported several small platoons leaving the city.
A cavalry that could break Gi Ga’s forces. Moreover, one with enough forces to afford sending a detached force. Given that information, Pale had no choice but to reconsider if attacking the enemy swiftly was a good idea.
In the unlikely event that they are able to force Pena to surrender, so long as Queen Raksha is alive and a strong army remains, they can flee to the north, and they will still have the chance to attack and restore their kingdom later. Pale had originally thought that Pena no longer had the strength to spare and could be blown by the passing winds, so she couldn’t help but frown upon seeing their unexpected tenacity.
“How many days will it take to move the army?”
The Goblin King’s question broke Pale’s thoughts for a moment.
“Roughly 7 days.”
At this point in time, Pale believed that there was no such thing as being too cautious. They could first ensure that the rear support was in good health, then they could surround Pena in one fell swoop. So long as they could suppress the symbol of Pena, Queen Raksha, regardless how strong their army is, they will lose their cause.
Until then it should be possible to gather even more information, Pale thought.
“In that case, let us not move our army from this camp.”
Pale nodded to the Goblin King’s words.
If they were to dispatch their army to force the surrounding cities to surrender, they will likely only be eaten by the superior army of the enemy. In order to avoid losing the advantage that they had, they had to avoid losing soldiers while they approached Pena.
“It seems our movements are being leaked.
“…The nearby cities are probably informing them.”
What the Goblin King was concerned about was losing the information war. It is no exaggeration to say that it was because the goblins have always been able to gain precise intel on their enemies that they have been able to gain victory after victory until now. But unlike before, the enemy this time has taken the initiative over them.
“Can we buy them?”
Pale’s eyes opened wide in surprise when the king said that.
“…It would be difficult, I believe. They probably consider kneeling to monsters as a humiliation.”
“Hmm…”
The Goblin King became thoughtful once more. As he thought to himself, Pale stared at him from the side. The Goblin King noticed that and turned to her.
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing. I just didn’t expect it. I thought you hated such backhanded methods.”
The Goblin King wryly smiled at that.
“It’s a small price to pay if it means saving my soldiers’ lives.”
Although the goblins were able to ally with the Kushain Believers and raise their diplomatic level to some extent, the other countries still see them as nothing but monsters that could not be reasoned with.
“In that case, we’ll have to take some other measures.”
There’s also the strategy of advancing while destroying the cities one after another, but this king would probably reject it, Pale thought.
The Goblin King and Pale spoke for a while, but in the end, they decided to lock themselves in their camp and wait for the wounded to recover.
◆◇◆
A warm welcome awaited Allen when he returned to the imperial capital of Pena. When all that fear the people had for the goblins was turned upside down, the people packed the streets and blessed the Order of the Blue Knights for successfully repelling them.
But Allen was not happy about that, and instead he steadily worked toward his next move.
He appealed before the Elder Council and asked them to send a messenger to Germion Kingdom and seek an alliance.
“Peace? With our archenemy, Pena, whom we’ve been at war with for so many years?”
“We humans must unite now. If not, the monsters will trample over our country and our families taken away!”
To persuade the reluctant elder council, Allen himself appeared before their wealthy members to report his army’s results and ask for their help.
“We can’t allow the monsters to approach this country! They have the Free Cities in their hands, and they even have a portion of Germion Kingdom. They are a threat to humanity!”
