The people gathered in the room were all quite different from humans.
I’ve already been acquainted with Nikea of the araneae, Yushika of the harpies, and Fanfan of the talpidae, but there was more to come, and the names and peculiarities of the people that came after was truly as one would expect from a demihuman.
Mido of the fang tribe, the werewolves, had fangs and his whole body covered in fur. He glared at me when he saw me. It seemed like he was always ready to go to war regardless of the friendly meeting at hand. Just as Nikea had mentioned beforehand, he was not one to hide his dislike for the goblins.
Tanita of the long-tailed tribe, the rizalat, was just like a lizardman with two heads and two tails. He had an exoskeleton over his upper body just like a crustacean, while on his lower body were those things that belonged to amphibians. He didn’t seem to like us much either.
Luther of the shell-tribe, the papirsag, was small and carried a grassy shell on his back. We met a few days ago, and while he wasn’t openly hostile, he had a tendency to avoid us.
Daizos of the man-horse tribe, the centaurs, was from the same tribe as Gurfia, who dreamed of unifying the demihumans; theirs was a tribe of power and wisdom. Like Mido, Daizos seemed to be an adherent of strength. He was not friendly.
The last one to arrive was Kerodotos of the man-bull tribe, the minotaurs. His appearance resembled more a wild buffalo than a farm cow, and he had two giant horns that reached for the skies, both of which were twice as big as mine. His condescending gaze suggested he had much experience as a warrior, though the way he spoke seemed to betray that.
“Hey, hey! Why is there a goblin here?” He said slowly as he began to swing the giant axe on his back at me.
Nikea quickly stepped in to stop him. If not for her, he would have probably actually swung that axe of his. He talks slow, but he seems to actually be short-tempered.
With that, all the members of the eight flag meeting have been gathered.
“I thank everyone for gathering here today,” Nikea said. “As the person responsible for calling this meeting, I shall act as its moderator. If there is anyone in—”
Nikea was still in the middle of her speech when the werewolf, Mido, spoke out.
“Why is there a filthy goblin here!?” He said as he glared at me.
“Are you insane? Bringing a filthy goblin to our proud meeting,” the centaur, Daizos, said
Luther of the shell tribe didn’t say anything out loud, but he was nodding nevertheless, while Tanita of the rizalat seemed to be quietly thinking. Yushika, on the other hand, seemed amused. As for Kerodotos and Fanfan, their thoughts were a mystery.
Everyone seemed to be against Nikea, but it was best to keep quiet for now. Stepping in now would just make things worse.
“I called this meeting to discuss two main topics. One, the matter regarding our republicRekyuble, and two, the threat coming from the east. This person here is the king that rules over the goblins of the east. He is our benefactor who has come to inform us of the threat. To treat him poorly would stain our pride,” Nikea said.
Almost everyone looked at me with dubious gazes except for Fanfan, who looked surprised, and Yushika, who seemed amused.
“Threat? What threat? You think these dumb goblins are actually credible?” Mido said.
“I agree with Lord Mido. Why would you trust a goblin!?” Daizos said.
I frowned, but Yushika’s words made everyone quiet.
“Unfortunately, he speaks the truth. Lord Nikea thought you would doubt information from a goblin, so she had me send people to check in advance. I can vouch for the goblin. He speaks the truth; the forest to the east has indeed been invaded,” Yushika said.
“And you are supposed to be… credible?” Tanita’s two heads alternately chuckled.
“But even if he is telling the truth!” Daizos was about to say when the minotaur interjected.
“I don’t like humans!” Kerodotos said.
Everyone except Fanfan furrowed their brows at the minotaurs untimely interjection.
Daizos continued. “Even if what the goblin says is true, that’s no reason to work with them!”
Luther of the papirsag smiled. “That may be so, but… we have already failed to build our country. How much time do we have?”
His eyes seemed sleepy, but from their depths could be seen a sharp gaze.
“I didn’t bother scouting the humans, so I don’t know,” Yushika nonchalantly said.
“Useless!” Mido of the werewolves spat.
“Oh?” Yushika’s brows raised. “I think I’m much better off than a certain arrogant mutt who’s only good at yelling.”
“Bitch!” Furious, Mido suddenly stood up.
“This is why I hate dogs!” Yushika said as she flew to my side.
Hey, are you seriously planning on dragging me into this mess?
“This goblin king is a lot more reliable,” Yushika said. “Not to mention, profitable. Especially compared to a certain someone who’s all take and no give.”
“Are you insinuating I’m less than a goblin!?” Mido glared at me.
“Stop it!” Nikea yelled. “Have you forgotten you are in the presence of a guest!?”
Yushika shrugged, while Mido clicked his tongue and sat back down.
“In any case, there’s still another issue at hand,” Luther of the papirsag said. “Gurfia’s ghost lurks yet. Unless we deal with that, our republic will remain a but a dream.”
Daizos frowned when he pointed that out.
“Oh, you won’t have to worry about that anymore,” Nikea said.
“What do you mean? That thing is dangerous. You can’t just—” Luther said when Nikea cut him off.
“The goblin king here has already subjugated it,” Nikea curtly said.
“What!?” Suddenly, everyone in the room turned their gazes to me. I stood tall and proud.
“He subjugated it alone. I can vouch for him,” Nikea said.
“It’s the power of love… The power of…” Fanfan said, but her voice was drowned out by everyone else.
“That’s impossible! We couldn’t kill it even with our elites! And yet you’re saying a single goblin subjugated it!?” Daizos said.
“It’s the truth. Or could it be, Lord Daizos, descendant of the noble crystal, that you doubt my word? That would be an insult to us, descendants of the red crystals,” Nikea glared back.
Daizos bitterly frowned.
“If true, that’s one problem out of the way,” Tanita said, half-believing, as he looked at me with his two heads.
“Along with informing us of the threat, the goblin king has also come to us with a proposal,” Nikea said.
All eyes turned to me. Having a naturally scary face is convenient at times like this.
“A proposal to form an alliance to fight off the humans,” Nikea said.
Suddenly, the chiefs went into an uproar. Though they might have expected it, they probably couldn’t stay put with how proud they are.
“I would like to hear everyone’s opinion,” Nikea said.
The chiefs looked at each other.
“…There are several things I would like to ask first,” Luther of the Papirsag looked at me. “If we reject your proposal, what will happen?”
I answered him. “We will be your enemy. It is better to cut off any possible source of problems sooner than later.”
Everyone glared at me, but it was best to lay things clearly. The demihumans have a right to make a decision, after all. They have the right to decide their path.
Whether they will follow me or go against me.
Whether they will fight with me or not.
Those are the two choices I have presented them. If they make a mistake, they will die. That’s all. It’s not much different than your usual hunt. Of course, being representatives of their various tribes, their decision will affect the rest of their people.
“I would like an answer,” I said.
Everyone turned to me in surprise after hearing my blunt response, even Nikea.
Nikea quickly answered, “We, the descendants of the red crystal, accept that proposal.”
It seems Rukenon has reported to her about our time together. The reason she responded so quickly is surely because she wishes to better her standing.
“Goblin King, must the cooperation in the stand against humans be purely military? Would it be possible to work together in other ways?” Yushika asked.
“Your support doesn’t have to be solely military. If you have other ways to support, I will gladly accept it,” I replied.
“In that case, the harpies shall accept your proposal,” Yushika said.
“Me too,” Fanfan said.
Starting off with a shocking proposal, then following up with some slightly agreeable conditions to make the agreement sound better.
What I presented before the chiefs were two paths, both of which led to war. The only question was which one they would fight, the goblins or the humans? The demihumans might hate the humans, but that alone wasn’t enough to convince them to work alongside the goblins.
Their pride was in the way, so it was necessary to find a way around that.
“I would like some time,” Tanita said with his two heads bowed.
“I would also like to ask for some time,” Luther of the papirsag said.
Seeing them make a difficult face as they went quiet, I laid down another one of my cards.
“How long?” I asked. “The humans won’t wait forever. If you’re going to cooperate, the sooner the better.”
“I need to convince my tribe,” Luther argued. “At least give me 20 days.”
“That won’t do,” I said.
“But!”
I shook my head. “You people are chieftains, leaders of your tribes, their representatives! You carry your tribes on your back! Isn’t it only fitting that you answer with your own minds?”
I continued. “Three days. Give me your answer by then.”
Everyone was quiet.
Suddenly, Kedorotos of the minotoaurs spoke.
“Oh! What a difficult topic! So hard, so hard! If everyone’s ok, why not just agree?” He said as he scratched his head.
“…I thank you for stopping Gurfia,” Daizos of the centaurs said. “But… we cannot possibly ally ourselves with you goblins! Right, Lord Mido?”
“…I have fought with Gurfia once,” Mido said.
Unlike Daizos who was heating up, Mido spoke calmly as he looked at me. The killing intent he had awhile ago was gone.
“Lord Mido?” Daizos said.
“Lord Daizos,” he said. “We werewolves of the fang tribe respect the strong. If this goblin has truly defeated Gurfia… I am thinking of accepting his proposal.”
“Then… The werewolves will accept?” Nikea asked.
“Under one condition.”
“A condition?”
“We of the fang tribe are friends with the wolves. Their eyes are able to discern the truth, and sometimes, they are even able to tell the location of our prey better than us. Goblin… If you truly are the king of the east and someone worthy of forming an alliance with, then they will see you as friends.”
Mido and Daizos stood.
“Three days later, come to the forest to the north, King of Goblins.”
Like that, Mido of the werewolves left with the bitter Daizos.
