Chapter 45: Goblin Village

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Goblin Village

Ragnar left the throne room.

The massive doors behind him slowly closed as his enormous figure disappeared into the corridors of the dungeon. At four meters tall, Ragnar’s presence was impossible to ignore.

His broad shoulders nearly filled portions of the narrower passages, and the huge greatsword strapped across his back occasionally reflected the dim light coming from the magical torches mounted along the walls.

The dungeon had changed significantly.

Only a short time ago, these corridors had been plain, empty passages made from ordinary stone. There had been little decoration, few monsters, and almost nothing that made the place feel like a genuine dungeon.

Now, however, everything was different.

Ancient-looking statues stood at several intersections. Strange symbols had been carved into the walls, while magical torches burned with faint blue and crimson flames.

Broken weapons, rusted armor, and old bones had been deliberately scattered throughout certain sections, giving the dungeon the appearance of a place that had existed for hundreds of years.

Of course, Ragnar knew that most of it had been created by the system only recently.

But the result was convincing.

As Ragnar walked through the corridors, he occasionally encountered the Monster Maids carrying cleaning equipment or moving supplies from one area to another. The small demonic creatures immediately stopped whenever they saw him.

"Greetings, Master."

Ragnar nodded.

"Carry on."

The maids quickly continued their work.

Ragnar didn’t stop walking.

His destination was one of the sections he had recently modified.

The Goblin Village.

Originally, Ragnar had only purchased a small goblin camp when he first entered this world. At that time, the camp contained only five goblins.

They had been his first monsters.

Back then, Ragnar’s dungeon had been almost completely empty, and he had desperately needed defenders.

The five goblins had been weak and unimpressive compared to the wolves, spiders, and other monsters he eventually acquired, but they had still served their purpose.

Now, things were different.

After Ragnar redesigned the first floor, he had decided to expand their territory.

The original goblin camp had gradually become something much larger.

A village.

Ragnar turned at an intersection and entered a long corridor leading toward the goblins’ territory.

The atmosphere slowly changed.

The stone walls of the dungeon began to disappear.

In their place were rough wooden structures, uneven fences, and several crude torches attached to the walls. The floor became covered with dirt and patches of grass created by the dungeon’s environmental system.

The further Ragnar walked, the more obvious the transformation became.

Eventually, the corridor opened into a large underground cavern.

Ragnar stopped.

Before him stood the Goblin Village.

It wasn’t particularly large.

Compared to a human village, it would probably be considered nothing more than a small settlement. However, for thirty goblins, the space was more than enough.

Several crude wooden huts had been constructed around the cavern.

A small watchtower stood near one of the entrances, although its construction was uneven enough that Ragnar wasn’t entirely confident about how long it would remain standing. Wooden fences surrounded portions of the village, while sharpened stakes had been placed near the main entrance.

There were even small fires burning around the settlement.

Several goblins moved between the huts.

Others were carrying weapons.

Some were dragging pieces of wood toward one of the structures, while a few smaller goblins were sitting near a fire and tearing apart pieces of meat.

Ragnar stood at the entrance and silently observed them.

The goblins hadn’t noticed him yet. For a moment, he simply watched.

They couldn’t speak.

At least, not in any language Ragnar could understand.

The goblins communicated through strange sounds, gestures, growls, and expressions. Sometimes they pointed at things. Sometimes they slapped one another to get attention. Occasionally, two goblins would begin arguing through a series of aggressive screeches before one eventually walked away.

Despite that, they weren’t mindless creatures. Ragnar had learned that quickly. They possessed intelligence.

Not the same level as humans, of course, but enough to understand their surroundings, recognize danger, use weapons, cooperate with one another, and even construct simple structures.

More importantly, they knew who Ragnar was.

One of the goblins suddenly froze.

The small green creature had been standing beside a hut while holding a crude wooden spear. Its large ears twitched as it turned toward the entrance of the village.

Then it saw him, the goblin’s eyes widened. For several seconds, it simply stared. Then it suddenly let out a loud cry.

"Graaaah!"

Every goblin in the village stopped. Thirty pairs of eyes turned toward Ragnar. The entire settlement became silent.

The goblins immediately began moving. Several dropped what they were carrying, others abandoned their food.

The goblins near the watchtower quickly climbed down.

Instead of running toward Ragnar with their weapons raised, however, they rushed toward him before stopping several meters away.

The goblins had been created through the system.

And Ragnar was the one who had summoned them.

To them, he was their creator. The being responsible for their existence.

Ragnar looked down at the group of green creatures.

One simply made a strange noise.

"Gruk."

Another immediately nodded.

Ragnar stared at them.

"...Right."

He had no idea what that meant. Still, he could understand the intention. The goblins seemed excited to see him.

Some were looking at him with wide eyes, while others remained completely still. A few even appeared nervous, as though they were afraid of disappointing him.

Before he could think about it further, a much larger figure emerged from one of the wooden structures near the center of the village.

The moment Ragnar saw it, his attention shifted.

A Hobgoblin.

Unlike the ordinary goblins, the creature was considerably larger.

It stood nearly three meters tall, towering over the other goblins with a muscular green body covered in rough leather armor. Several old scars crossed its arms and chest, while a heavy iron axe rested in one hand.

Its features were far more intimidating than those of the ordinary goblins.

And its eyes carried a much sharper intelligence.

This was the mini-boss Ragnar had assigned to lead the Goblin Village.

The Hobgoblin stopped in front of the settlement.