The goblin presented the sword to the only human in the forest. She was surprised. It was a Mythril blade. Light but as sturdy as an iron.

Skulk was back in the territory of the late Chimera. In the old shack that was now upgraded to a better living quarter than before, rather it looked like a two-story house.

She even had a dirty kitchen outside and a workshop just beside the stairs going up to her bedroom. Add to that the beautiful terrace where she even hung up some hammock she made herself.

The old woman removed the leather that was covering the blade. “This is beautiful… really beautiful,” the word beautiful was even underrated.

“However it's still incomplete we still have to work on its scabbard!” the goblin said then took out a few leathers and even a bunch of clothes made by the spider he knows of.

“Oh! I’ve never seen those materials before! Amazing! This goddamn forest is full of surprises! I wish I could go around and explore it bit by bit!” the old woman said as he caressed some of the leather.

“You could come with me if you like! In exchange for just learning some of your crafting skills I would be happy to give you a tour!” the goblin said and he took out some food to offer it to the old woman. It was some sort of sweetened tofu.

They sat at the lower veranda, it had already been months and the forest was starting to get cold.

The goblin smiled and flashed his teeth “The beavers will come tomorrow to install some heating fix in your house so that you can feel comfortable in the winter!” the goblin and the old woman began munching on the food, the old woman stared at his apprentice. “-Yes, I’ve got some dried pears, here you go!” the goblin said as he took out a bundle of leaves.

“That’s what I’m talking about!” the old woman said and she opened up the leaves. She fell in love with the pears the first time she had them.

“Also, I will be busy for a while, do you remember your suggestion about building a goblin village in the forest?” Skulk began a conversation with a bit of a serious tone. “I’ve told the harpies to deliver you some food!”

“That’s so sweet of you, if you are worried that I will get bored then scratch that, though I would like some of your processed wool,” the old woman said.

The goblin really had a great respect for the old woman, not only she was her master, but she taught him without prejudice and even shared a lot of information outside of the forest.

“Are going to make some dress or something?” the goblin asked.

The old woman then placed her hand inside her pocket, there was a small paper there with a drawing of a dress.

“I actually can’t remember how my husband exactly drew it, he said that he would make this for me but he died in a war,” the old woman began telling her story in bits.

“I see… that’s good. You can visit the site if you want, it's just a bit of a half-day walk from here but if you could swing the vines it would only take a few hours!” the goblin then took out a wooden stick and began drawing in the ground. Marking their spot and drawing a line while telling her what she would see there, even the landmarks.

The old woman took note of the hot springs “That’s really far, the hot springs you are saying are interesting though… maybe I’ll be visiting there!” she had an experience of going to a hot spring once and it was really a good experience.

“Hmm… suit yourself! How about we begin making the scabbards? I also want to make one for my sword!” the goblin said eager to learn something new again.

<--->

2 days had passed and he was now scouting for a good place to start the village.

The old woman literally listed the things that he should consider to create a village and develop it. First of all, was the location of the village. Building it near a body of water would really help them out in the beginning then they should expand from that.

This would also be ideal if they would have visitors that loved to play in the water and the beavers immediately came into his mind. His plan was to make the goblin village a farming village.

He was planning to create fields for different plants and a greenhouse so that he could grow plants the whole seasons. There should also be a large field for animals as he was planning to take care of some livestock like the Dabby Cows that he heard from the dragon, they were living on a field northwest of the forest of Reed.

“Isn’t this spot too good?” the goblin said, the place was a few walks into his tree mansion.

There was the river on the west part and a good long bank that had good stones on it. On the other side of the river was a cliff. He had to scout around the spot. For loose soil or other monsters that were living near them.

After going around for a while he was assured that it was a good spot but the cliff on the other side of the river looked so eerie for him. Although he didn’t have to check it he just had to be sure.

He went to the other side of the river by climbing up over the cliff. At first, it looked like a normal forest that had bushes and leaves all around. The goblin immediately noticed that the trees and the wind were speaking with each other.

He immediately took out the dragon scale but no words resonated from it.

“Strange one… it can hear all the voices in the forest but the voices of the spirits are different,” the voice echoed in the forest, he was sure that it was speaking in human language.

“Is it possible to know who you are?” the goblin spoke into the wind.

There was a few moments of silence before the voice answered back “I am the dryad of the Reed Forest or the Talahib… I can tell that you are looking for a good place to make a village.”

“Uhm… is it okay for you to be our neighbors, just down on the river bank,” Skulk said as friendly as he could.

“Hah? You must jest… rather I’m the real owner of the forest, we will not be neighbors rather I will be your landlord,” the dryad spoke in a humorous tone.

“I see… can we build a village over there?” the goblin used his hands to point back into the river.

“... You can but promise me one thing,-” Then the trees began moving “-You have to pay back to the forest,” the dryad said and from the ground just in front of where Skulk was standing a plant sprouted.

“Take the sprout, hold it just before the first branch,” the dryad instructed.

Skulk followed, and as he held it in his hands the plant began to wither only leaving a part of the wood which automatically detached itself from the ground. The last part of the wood that was withering away turned into a circle just on the top of the goblin’s thumb.

“Take a look at the circle on the top of the stick!” the voice instructed further.

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Although the goblin was reluctant he still followed. The circle created a green-like hue like Skulk was staring into a transparent glass. “What is this?” the goblin asked.

“It's a scanning staff, look through it so that you can find one’s job and skills, though the access to the jobs and skills would depend on how high your level is!” the voice said.

The goblin almost jumped in joy. “Thank you! This is very helpful!” Skulk said while waving in the wind.

“I will allow you to cut the trees around that river but do not touch the trees in here… this is my favorite dwelling! You may leave now!” the voice then sounded in a hurry.

“Wait, Uhm… can I have one more question?” Skulk tried to push his luck.

“... Be quick!” the voice answered back.

“Is there any way to know someone's life span?” the goblin asked, even the goblin chief and the wolf didn’t know how to answer this one.

“Hmm… we greater spirits are not inside the concept of levels rather we are a part of nature.-” Then the explanation as follows: Monsters with jobs could increase their life span by leveling up. It was different for each species. Some species could live hundreds of years. A species should break a certain threshold of level before they could increase their life span.

As per the dryad’s explanation, the goblins would usually need to break into level 20 for them to begin to accumulate the extra life span. But then again, a dragon who would live a very long life would need to break into level 100 before gaining the extra life span.

Humans were different though, they had a fixed life span and would only extend depending on how healthy they would live.

“I see…” the goblin nodded.

“Then… I will take my leave, remember, you owe the forest and you will have to pay back the forest someday…” and slowly the voice faded.

<--->

Day 1

The construction of the village began. The three moles began digging deeper gorge for the canals of the village while the six beavers began pushing down logs that would be used in the construction of the houses in the village. They used the river as a shortcut for their labor and it was really effective.

After putting the logs and the moles finishing their digging they ended the day with a small feast and it was Skulk who prepared the food and they really loved it.

The mushroom burned bark for the beavers add to that a bluefin fillet.

Stone-fried crickets for the moles. The goblin actually had many ideas as he heard the diet of the moles was mostly insects but the insects in the Reed Forest were monsters so he didn’t have that much choice.

Day 2

In the morning, the three moles watched as the beavers and the goblin whined and growled. They seemed to be discussing something. There were now more beavers on the site. Food was already served as they were in a meeting.

After spending the morning discussing the goblin began giving the instructions of their next steps. The moles were instructed to dig in certain spots while the beavers began uniformly trimming the logs. The goblin would deploy a technique the old lady called, the assembling technique.

They would make woods that could later be just assembled even by the goblins. That day too in the afternoon they began constructing some of the houses.

And at night they feasted again from the never-ending collection of food from Skulk’s bag. He also announced that the beavers and the moles would be on a break the next day.

Day 3

Skulk summoned the goblins on the site and they began construction of the houses and the ranch. The goblins were useful with the handiwork jobs. He ordered them to begin installing the walls of the general commonplace of the village.

In the morning, Skulk searched for a harpy, he was already very familiar with their routes and knew how to call them. He sent for the leader of the wolf, Razorback.

In the afternoon, the wolf arrived.

“You look like you lost some weight,” the goblin joked but the wolf didn’t take it nicely.

“You damn idiot… my pack is beginning to starve. I thought you would have a solution after a week,” he said. It was rare for a prideful wolf to complain. Stomping his front paw, he emphasized the seriousness of the situation. “Maybe I will take some of your kin instead?”

“Come on, I already have a solution, have you ever heard of the Dabby Cows?” Skulk smiled.

“Go on, let’s hear your idea,” the wolf licked his teeth.

“Much better if I show it to you, let’s go!” Skulk smiled.

<--->

Dabby Cows are notorious for their invasive nature within ecosystems. These creatures devour any type of greenery, effortlessly overcoming plant defenses ranging from deadly poisons to sharp spikes. Their voracious appetites and resilience make them a significant threat to plant life everywhere they roam.

They come from the northwestern fields. They were quick to propagate, it only takes a week for another batch of calves to be born.

The wolf and the goblin hid in the bush. Although the wolf was big he was good at hiding.

“It is the first time I’ve seen these creatures, I have not yet been back in this part of the forest, that’s the Dabby Cows?” the wolf spoke softly not to make too much noise.

“Yep… they taste really good. I know of it,” the goblin said showing his tooth, it was a devious smile.

The wolf loved the face that Skulk was making “What’s the plan now?” the wolf asked.

“I want to check if they have some kind of sentience… I would be disturbed if the animals we would be using as livestock could communicate,” the goblin then began moving “-So I would approach and try to talk to them.”

“Then why did you bring me?” Razorback probed, not that he had other plans for that day.

“I need someone to watch my back, and I trust you,” the goblin replied.

“I see…” the wolf answered ice cold though his tail was waving wildly.

…

Skulk crept toward the first cow he spotted. It stood leisurely, chewing on the bush leaves with a slow, rhythmic motion. Without hesitation, he pulled out the dragon scale and pressed it against his ear. The cow, surprisingly unperturbed by his presence, continued munching as if he were part of the scenery. Its eyes remained half-lidded, its tail swishing lazily, showing no sign of alarm or even curiosity as Skulk drew closer.

Finally, when he was standing on the side of the cow it didn’t pay any attention to him. What’s more strange was that he was not hearing anything from the dragon’s scale. He took out his Mythril sword that was on a new scabbard, the cow just stared at him. It stopped chewing for a while like pausing from a glitch and it continued to chew anyway.

Skulk landed a blow cutting off the cow’s head.

“It didn’t think of even anything… strange creature,” Skulk said.

Then suddenly Razorback jumped by Skulk’s side. “Skulk! They are everywhere!” the wolf warned him.

“What the hell is happening…?” Skulk continued listening to the dragon’s scale but there was no response.

He felt the ground shaking. From different sides around them, the cow began their charge.

“Leave some alive!” Skulk screamed as he brandished his sword.

“Oh, their meat smells so good!” Razorback said as he sniffed the cleanly beheaded cow.

Skulk immediately stored the cow’s body in his storage, he just needed to touch it.

<--->

Day 6

Johanna in her curiosity visited the goblin’s village. She brought some of her finished products hoping to trade for anything at all or probably because she was feeling lonely, the harpies were not a good conversationalist and the fruits and vegetables they delivered were strange. Although the goblin thought her which ones were poisonous, she wasn’t sure if a human could eat them.

She actually left yesterday but lost herself in the hot springs bath where monkey monster also took a bath. She found a companionship there in enjoying the bath as the monkeys would also share some of the fruit and drinks they brought on the spring.

Although those monkeys didn’t speak, they were using gestures and signs that were almost akin to humans which was why she easily understood them. She was really beginning to like the forest of Reed and she even wondered if it was okay.

She lost many friends during their expeditions in the forest.

Finally, she could smell something being cooked, and as she got closer she could hear loud noises of monsters and such. After passing a few more trees she finally saw the village.

“The hell is this… not even a week!!!” she exclaimed, the village was almost finished and was already in the final stages of completion.

Skulk who was in the lead of construction immediately saw her. “Johanna! Master!! Here!” he screamed in joy to see her face again.

The old man then noticed that there were so many of Skulk’s kin. She immediately could tell the different colors of the goblins which were green and reddish brown.

She approached the village, and the goblins who saw her stared at her as if she were a new creature that they had newly encountered. The wolves already knew of her scent and the beavers that were passing by turned their tails on her expecting a slap which she happily gave using her hands.

“Good to see you! I was actually going to visit you after a few days!” the goblin cheerfully approached the old lady.

“This is amazing! In just a few days!” the old woman said.

“How about waiting at the shed! It’s a good spot to watch us work!” the goblin then pointed to a shabby building, it looked like a small watch tower, there were even some beavers making some barbecue stall there.

The old woman followed the goblin’s advice and went to the shed. The beavers there were her companions during the party before. She was beginning to see the difference between the beavers. From their smell and the number of their whiskers.

They welcomed her and even offered her a seat which she happily sat to.

In a few moments, they resumed the project to build the goblin village.

To her amazement, watching them do their thing.

The beavers with their wood mastery, were carpenters, an expert at that. They shaped the logs into a beautiful pile standardizing it and even properly segregating it.

The moles were digging effortlessly, they were even piling out the dirt they produced. The dirt was being used by the goblins turning it into mud and placing it on the gaps for the wooden buildings that were probably houses for the goblins.

“The hell is happening…” Johanna muttered she might have been witnessing the birth of a Lord of the forest.