Chapter 173

Cleaning Up

Hawkin

Brewer’s Reputation: 99

Forest leaves rustled not only from the wind; fireflies burst through the trees. Debris on the forest floor rustled not only from my footsteps; a dozen soaked goblins followed me. They had been a difficult bunch to earn their trust. As we went, they gulped and they smacked their lips. All it had taken was a bottle of Goblinspuck each. After their first sip, they didn’t seem to care where I led them. After their last sip, they started to grumble and look around.

“Just a little further,” I said.

“You better not be lying, human. Cause if you are, you're gonna get killed.”

The trail we had made was only a few paces ahead. We crossed into it. The massive Mist Hidden wall flared tall. Down the trail, Abigail led own own group of goblins. It seemed that she must have had a difficult time coercing them to floor her as well. Each one beamed over a shiny copper coin as they skipped alongside her.

“There were some others, but they were running away full force,” she said.

“Any idea if Thrush is still sleeping?”

“I’m guessing he’s still out cold. That belly was terrifying. Don’t think I’ve ever seen it get so big.”

Thrush’s belly was a powerful thing. He had stuffed it beyond full when we battled Gloom-glower on the coast. When they raided my cabin, he had stuffed it just as full too. I wanted to put a number on how many goblins he could eat, but I feared he could keep expanding his stomach. Forty goblins? Could he fit fifty? At some point, he would be digesting them as fast as he was showing them into his mouth. Yet even when he had tripled in size after those grisly meals, he had only slept for a few days at most.

“Yeah, he’ll probably be up soon,” I said.

With another batch of Goblinspuck beer and another round of copper coins, we successfully led the goblins back to where the trail ended at the shore. Already the trail was useful.

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Humans were reeling in wreckage from the sea. Hundreds of goblins were abiding the two ship building rules and building sloops. Not a single human seemed to be exempt from astonishment. Watching the goblins mesh wreckage together to build sloops shouldn’t have worked. The sloops sank at first. Goblins clambered in regardless and started bailing. There were more than enough bailing buckets floating around.

Water trickled overboard. As more goblins joined the bailing, the trickle turned to a constant waterfall. Astonishment, bewildered, and utterly astounded, the bailing worked. The sloop rose from the sea. Under a blue flag with two big toes forming an X, the sloop sailed off.

“Well I’ll be,” said a dungeon crawler.

At a makeshift table, one of the scholars scribbled ferociously. His parchment took the strikes of his black bleeding quill, but not without curling at the corners. “What an event!” said the scholar. “What timing! A massive goblin battle at sea! The battle for Goblinspuck!”

It was really a mutiny, but I had implored everyone to help me save the goblins while keeping an eye out for Slime-tooth. The energy to correct him was not in me.

The goblins we had led to the main group, however, did have energy. They bounded forward and joined the crews that worked to erect the next sloop. Another rose from the sea with a yellow flag. A hand without a thumb was at its center.

“Don’t forget some supplies!” I said to the remaining goblins.

Within large tents, Brewers were hard at work producing sustenance beers. I had given them as many ethereal forged barrels as I could, and they filled them and gave them to the goblins. There were also a ton of Goblinspuck and furnace attribute beers in there too.

“I wish I could make barrels this easily,” said one of the Brewers as he rolled my ethereal forged barrel across the ground. “No wonder you can distribute so much so quickly.”

The Alchemists were also using ethereal forged bottles which I had given them. They filled them with potions and handed them out among the goblins.

I felt a hand slip in mine. Abigail pulled me to her, and she nodded back down the trail.

“Another round?” she said. “Shouldn’t be too many stragglers left.”

I strengthened my grip. “I’m glad Slime-tooth is safe.”

The hoots of the goblins faded as we took the trail. When we could no longer hear the sea, Abigail swung our arms.

“I can’t wait for a good night’s sleep,” she said.

“We’re going to need it to finish the tavern.”

“I heard that the scholars have been recording every detail of the mutiny.”

“They misunderstand what happened.”

“We’re going to be in it. According to them, we withheld goblin spit beer from Gloom-glower, and that was the start of it all. Dethroners of the goblin king, I think they called us. You think it’ll affect our Brewer’s Reputation?”

“Maybe,” I said, shrugging. “Mine is just above one hundred now.”

Abigail whirled on me. “You’re joking. Tell me you’re joking.”

“It’s at ninety-nine.”

“Hawkin! Dellia might be right! You might become the best Brewer in the world! Reaching the top one hundred is already a feat! Let’s celebrate! Tonight?” She closed the distance between us and took my other hand. With soft eyes she said, “Let’s celebrate, you and me.”