North forest was as calm as always that day. The man himself was absently picking weeds from around his home. His thoughts were mostly focused on the growing colony beneath his home, and the various needs he was helping them acquire.

The tribes were now cooperating nicely. The Gu tribe taught the others farming and assisted in construction of weapons to increase the other tribes hunting abilities. With the resources of the groups combined they could produce more than ever before.

Unbeknownst to the man this newfound cooperation also spawned a group known as the Black Guard. Made up of the best warriors from each tribe and solely in charge of the safety of the King of the Goblins. They were constantly watching out for the king from within the shadows.

Even now as the man lightly brushed dirt from his knees they watched and protected.

After a fairly late lunch the man noticed a rather frantic looking group marching toward him in the distance. Centered in the group was Philip with a rather relieved look on his face.

"Thank Gods." Philip says drawing a religious symbol with his fingers. "We made it in time."

"What’s up?" The man asks calmly. Gauging from Philip’s entourage it is something fairly big.

"Someone has placed a price on your head." Philip says gripping his head and shaking it in exasperation. "Our spies in the underworld instantly reported it which is good but there is no telling when they might arrive. And it’s near impossible to remove a bounty from the board. Only the contractor themselves can overturn it."

"Someone wants me dead?" The man asks with a frown. Indeed this was a big deal. "Who?"

"Mhm, we aren’t sure. If we could find the person we would surely force them to remove the bounty. One of my ministers suggested it may be the Mill associations work. But I can believe they would take such drastic action."

"Mill association?"

"Mhm, guild, association, kabal. Whatever they want to call themselves. They run almost all the spice business in Aelwick so you would inevitably garner their wrath." Philip explains setting down across from the man at the table.

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

"I see. And they would go so far as to kill to keep their business?"

"It can’t be known for sure, but its highly possible. Unless there is some other group you may have angered."

"None that I can think of." The man shrugs.

And that really was the truth. Everyone he had met so far he had been able to make friends with in some way or another. Typically by making them food. No human can deny a good dish. People are wise enough not to harm someone who can make them a good meal.

With the explanation done, the king described his intentions. He would be leaving a group of fourteen guards in order to dissuade would-be assassins. The man had no choice but to accept the appointed guards.

Philip then left promptly, winged by Grant and another Elite Guard.

The two guards expected no problems with the watch. Really, how many assassins could get past a well trained squad of royal soldiers.

In reality though that was simply the first line in the defense.

As the evening came so too did the waves of hopeful assassins.

The first three attacked simultaneously. And also fell simultaneously. This sight made many of the hidden faces grimace. This wouldn’t be as easy as it looked on paper.

Group after group attempted various methods of attack. Two even made it past the first line of defense by choking the guards with noxious powder but a group of Goblins swung in from the trees shouting gibberish about ‘protecting the king’.

The human guards who witnessed this were awestruck but they soon ignored it as another group of assassins ran through the dark woods towards the smoke belching house.

That night eighteen assassins were incapacitated by the human guards while twenty two were done in by the Black Guard. This was the very first joint operation between the humans and goblins. And it was a flawless success.

Many of the assassins, seeing that the guards weren’t taking lives grew weary and ran. Taking a life is easy, it relies on instincts. All these assassins had such instincts, but only a rare few could incapacitate an enemy during a battle without shedding blood.

When the morning light finally rose the guards were faced with a large group of tied men and women. Many were still dazed or unconscious but some had angry or fearful looks on their faces. The guards inevitably realized they weren't the only contributors to the night but when they looked they could see no other figures.

But still, those who were assisted throughout the night by the goblins were eternally grateful.