The following days I hunt stray goblins and the occasional pair. In response to this the goblins stay in groups of three or more. They have to leave the safety of the cave to forage. They seem to be particularly fond of a plump pumpkin like vegetable that grows hidden in the shadow of trees. Mr Analyze calls it a goblin fruit. Still looks like a vegetable to me.

Most of the goblins I kill are better armed than the first two. Some have sharp sticks like my first spear, while others have stone tipped spears and axes. If only I could take out one of the lieutenants. They are armed with metal weapons. I can't help feel a bit inferior since I haven't advanced to the metal age yet. I shouldn't feel down. They probably stole the weapons from more cultured races. I up my game and start hunting groups of three goblins.

The morning after taking down three groups of three there is a significant shift in the goblins behavior. It looks like all the goblins have gathered outside the cave. No women among them. They divide into 4 groups of roughly ten each. Each group is lead by one of the lieutenants. One lieutenant is missing. He must be in the cave assigned guard duty. The hobgoblin is staying in the cave as well. What a lazy guy. He has clearly formed 4 hunting parties to find and kill me, but refuses to take part.

For the next few days I stay well out of sight. No reason to motivate their hunt. Sure enough, on the fourth day the hunt stops, and everyone returns to the nest. I reckon there are about 50 fighters left in that nest. Too many to take on in a defensive position. Unsure what to do next I just observe the nest. They are still gathered outside the cave. This time the hobgoblin joins them. It looks like they are preparing for a longer journey. They are bringing luggage. As the full force of about 40 goblins head out I trail them.

Two days march later they arrive at a the same mountain range I am painfully familiar with. The difference is that they have found the mountain pass that I was previously looking for. They look to be settling in for the night in a nearby clearing at the edge of the mountain. It looks like they are leaving behind some supplies as they are busy building a small crude stone structure. Makes sense. The clearing is close enough to keep an eye on the pass. They appear to be getting ready for a raid beyond the mountains. They can escape through the pass and a guard can keep an eye out for pursuers while the rest are resting.

The following day after tracking them through the pass I leave an alert marker at the entrance to the pass. This should give me about a day's warning before they get to the clearing. I have already scouted the spot as the perfect place for any ambush. Hopefully their numbers will be reduced by their raid. While they are away I should be able to clear the nest. They have wrongly assumed that their nest was safe, assuming my assessments of the remaining fighters is correct. There is a risk with everything.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Hopefully the remaining goblins are holed up in the nest and not wandering about. As I am not able to produce more than one alert marker, I am gambling that the remaining goblins are all in the cave. Worst case scenario would be if other goblins come back to the cave while I am heading in. It sucks being on your own with no one to watch your back.

Back at the nest I spot two goblin sentries with spears at the entrance. They are conveniently exposed in the open. There is no sneaking in, a frontal assault is the only option. I step out in the open and take down both sentries. I can vaguely see movment just inside the cave. I send another couple of arrows into the cave while approaching. Will it provoke them or scare them.

As expected the two goblins inside are provoked and charge out. Not too smart are they. No, I need to keep in mind that there is at least one smart older goblin in there. One of the lieutenants stayed being. There could be others as well. No more goblins come charging out, as if to prove my point. Stuffing the four arrow-pierced goblins in my soul storage I proceed inside.

The cave is dimly lit by the same gloving moss I have seen in other caves. Still, I am making good use of the night vision skill I gained from hunting at night. A more recent skill that should give me at least the same vision as the goblins who are used to dark caves. I hope!

I switch to a spear as the visibility is too short for a bow. Almost immediately a goblin charges out of the dark. My spear skewers him, but before I can slide him off another goblins come charging at me. I let go of the spear summon a stone axe and elegantly dodge the clumsy goblin, crushing his skull in the process. Six down, I only estimated there to be ten fighters left in the nest, but then I never saw any women. Who knows I might need to retreat with fifty angry goblin wives at my back.

The tunnel splits. My second biggest fear. None of my skills are alerting me to any danger. Which branch do I take. As stealthily as possible I sneak down one randomly picked tunnel. My neck is itching from the heightened sense of having my back exposed. I pick out two sleeping bodies deep in the cave. Summoning two spears I point one at each and thrust simultaneously. Both die, but not as quiet as I had hoped. Maybe a flint knife would have been better.

I wait and listen for any signs that I have been spotted. Nothing happens. Proceeding a bit further in, I notice that the tunnel ends. I need to backtrack and take the other tunnel. Back at the junction I head down the other tunnel. I still feel nervous that I might get surrounded, since I don't know if any goblins went towards the exit while I was in the other tunnel. At least they won't find any bodies, since I stuffed them in my storage.