Viscount Anilius Sulton had been anxious ever since that incompetent woman had been sent to investigate. His nerves only grew when he caught wind of the report. Goblins turning into cute children? A grandmother making pies? Was this some sort of joke? If the goblins really did turn into cute children, then that grandmother was clearly something horrific in disguise. If they did not, then that grandmother was certainly being held hostage by them and search for sugar was a cry for help.
Either way, the nonsense about baking pie was most certainly a lie. The problem was, the king bought that lie and let that retired admiral continue to play mediator. He forbid anyone to act, but Viscount Sulton knew better. Once the king realized the truth he had, he was sure to thank him.
With his foolproof plan in mind, the viscount found himself a mercenary guild known for keeping quiet for an extra fee. If everything went south, he was certain he could pin it on them. A last minute accusation thrown his way could be easily ignored.
The moment Viscount Sulton entered the building, he caught the eyes of several distasteful looking thugs. He supposed he couldn’t expect much more from mercenaries, but smelling the strong scent of cheap alcohol early in the morning was especially unpleasant. What disgusting vermin. He might have to frame them for something later even if things turned out perfectly just to get rid of their filth from the city.
“I’ve come with a job for you,” he told them, “A quiet job.”
“We don’t do assassinations,” one of the men near the door said, revealing his uneven set of teeth.
How vulgar! No, he mustn’t show his distaste or the plan would fail. “It is a monster extermination of great urgency,” he continued, ignoring the earlier comment.
“Why is it quiet?”
“My backer does not wish to cause a panic,” Viscount Sulton answered. Just one more seed of doubt just in case this lot betrayed him and ratted him out. They would waste time looking for a backer that didn’t exist.
“Where?” a much neater gentleman asked. If he could be called that. While he was neat in comparison to the thugs, he still had an air of danger and a rugged appearance his neat clothes could not hide.
“The Dark Forest. There is a goblin horde there that is showing signs of a Great One. We must exterminate them before it gains power.”
The neater man considered for a moment. “I will need at least a hundred gold up front for that kind of mission,” he replied.
Upfront! What absolute gall! He intended to take more after the fact too? A hundred gold was no small sum! Still, if it could buy the favor of the king, it was worth it. He would simply have to come up with some reason not to pay them after.
“Deal,” Viscount Sulton told him, but made no moves to shake his hand. Who knows where that hand had been?
==========
A few days after her first visit, Michelle had returned with flour. It was just one bag, mostly full, but it was very large.
This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.
“Are you sure I can have this?” Gertrude asked, “I haven’t given you anything in return.”
“You can,” Michelle assured her, “Consider it a gift from one grandmother to another.”
It was sweet, but Gertrude still didn’t like receiving while giving nothing in return. She went into the room they used for storage and rummaged around to see if there was anything that Michelle might perhaps be interested in. She settled on a few edible fruits and mushrooms Gubby had told her were rare and delicious and came back out to give them to her.
Unfortunately, that is when chaos descended. Several of the children came tearing through the trees into the clearing, looking terrified. Chasing close behind were some men Gertrude could only describe us thugs wielding swords and other unpleasantly pointy objects.
Gertrude dropped the objects, gripping the mysterious staff closer for comfort. What was happening? She had to protect her children! The green gem on the staff began to glow, just as one of the thugs caught Gabby by the arm.
“Get back here, you little goblin!” he shouted as he yanked her back and swung at her with his sword.
“No!” Gertrude shouted.
There was a bright green flash from the staff and the place the sword struck, and somehow Gabby pulled free from the thug unharmed. This emboldened the others to stop fleeing and stand their ground.
“Great Mother is protecting us! We must protect her!” Gobby ordered.
“There really is a Great One,” one of the thugs spat, “We need to get this over with quickly!”
Get this over with? Get this over with!? Gertrude felt rage begin to boil within her. How dare they treat the attempted slaughter of her precious children as an annoying task! The staff flashed again, a darker green.
“I feel stronger,” one of the children noticed.
“I do too,” Gubby confirmed, clenching his fists, “I will avenge the precious food you wasted!”
Before Gertrude could say anything to stop him, he charged forward and rammed into the nearest thug. The others shouted and followed suit. They didn’t have much attack power, but the thugs couldn’t harm them.
Suddenly the one person everyone had forgotten was there and shouted over the situation with a booming voice.
“Goblins! Mercenaries!” Michelle called, “Stand Down! I am Admiral Marshall and chief military officer of Zyrk present. Why have you disturbed His Majesty’s negotiations?”
The thugs, who turned out to be mercenaries, immediately froze, with the children reluctantly backing away to surround Gertrude. That was the second time someone had called them goblins. Was that what they were called here? A tall lean man with clothing in the neatest state stepped forward.
“Admiral, I was informed by a noble that the goblin horde in this forest was a threat that needed to be taken out immediately. Has his majesty not informed them of his negotiations?”
“He has issued an order for no one to act on the situation,” Michelle replied, seeming perfectly at ease surrounded by those who had just been fighting to the death moments before, “It would be in your best interests to reveal the name of the noble who misinformed you.”
The man let out a sigh of exasperation. “I should have known something was up when they transformed into children in front of our eyes,” he muttered.
“Excuse me,” Gertrude finally managed to speak up, “What do you mean transformed? Haven’t they always been children?”
It was Michelle’s turn to look surprised. “You didn’t know?”
The goblins formed a tighter circle as Michelle approached, several latching onto Gertrude’s arms as if afraid she would leave them. “Haven’t they?” Gertrude asked again.
“Children, perhaps,” Michelle finally said, “but they definitely changed. Goblins have never looked this cute.”
“Does this have to do with the dome we entered?” the head mercenary asked.
“Most certainly,” Michelle agreed, “Everything in the Dark Forest became pleasant and beautiful once we entered it.”
Pleasant… Something about that word struck a cord with Gertrude. It couldn’t be… Was this Isekai’s doing?
“You said something about a goblin horde and a king?” There were quite a few children, but certainly not enough to be considered a horde.
“We received a report from the outpost just outside the forest when these goblins were looking for sugar. I was sent to investigate and mediate.”
So this was her fault? Gertrude looked down at the children, noticing their anxiety and tension as they watched her. So what if they only looked pleasant because of the trick Isekai had pulled. They were such sweet children who had taken her in when she had nothing.
“What will happen now?” Gertrude asked.
“First, I will interrogate these mercenaries,” Michelle replied, “Then I suppose I can negotiate openly.”
“If you wouldn’t mind, could you do the interrogation elsewhere? I need some time…”
“Of course,” Michelle agreed, and turned to the mercenaries, “You won’t be trying anything funny on the way to the outpost, I am sure.”
“Of course not,” the head mercenary promised, “I intend to make the scoundrel who hired us pay for his lies and trickery.”