The goblins who had fled the northern battlefield quickly realized that there was nowhere left to run. The northern gate had become a death trap, with kobold archers controlling the battlements and Ka’z’s forces occupying the entrance, while the southern gate and walls were engulfed in flames.
Their only remaining options were the eastern and western walls, and desperate as they were, they rushed toward them in large numbers, hoping that enough of them could climb over the wooden defenses before the enemy noticed. Unfortunately for them, the kobolds had anticipated exactly this reaction.
Gruk and Mi’ya were already positioned along the western battlement with bows in their hands, while Bigi, Bruk, and Tark occupied the eastern wall. The moment the first goblins reached the base of the walls and began scrambling upward, arrows descended upon them. Some were struck through the back and tumbled down onto those behind them, while others were hit in the head or chest before they could even get their hands over the top of the wall.
The eastern and western walls had become killing grounds, and the goblins were trapped between them and the burning gates.
The desperate attempt to escape quickly turned into a one sided slaughter. Goblins screamed as they pushed past one another, some desperately pleading with those ahead of them to move faster while others simply ran without caring who they trampled in their panic.
Meanwhile, Loki’s group finally reached the southern wall. Loki had expected to see a large kobold force advancing toward them, perhaps an army preparing to storm the gate while the northern battle continued. Instead, he found nothing of the sort.
The entire southern wall was burning. Flames crawled along the wooden battlements in both directions, consuming everything in their path and sending thick smoke into the night sky. Sections of the wall had already collapsed, while the southern gate had become little more than a massive wall of fire. The flames continued spreading east and west, and it was only a matter of time before the entire defensive structure was consumed.
"Damnit!" Loki cried out, his face twisting with frustration as he finally understood how thoroughly they had been deceived.
There was no army waiting outside because the kobolds had never needed one. Loki immediately turned around and began running north, his fifteen warriors following behind him without hesitation. Whatever happened at the northern gate, they could no longer afford to remain separated from the rest of their forces.
At the northern wall, Ka’z and his group slowly walked through what had once been the village’s defensive line. Their feet stepped over fallen goblins as they advanced deeper into Ashmork, their weapons still stained with blood from the battle.
The screams of fleeing civilians and wounded warriors continued echoing through the streets, but Ka’z paid little attention to them. His eyes remained fixed ahead until they finally settled upon a lone figure sitting on the ground. The obese goblin had not attempted to flee.
He simply sat there with his back slightly hunched and his short sword lying several feet away from him. His breathing was heavy, and his face carried none of the panic surrounding him. Instead, he watched Ka’z’s group approach with lifeless eyes, as though whatever hope he had possessed had already been extinguished.
Soon Ka’z and the others stood over him. Krov looked down at the obese goblin and tilted his head slightly, confusion evident in his expression. There was nothing about the man that suggested he was a warrior, and compared to the powerful fighters they had encountered throughout the battle, he looked almost pathetic.
"He doesn’t seem like a warrior," Krov remarked, his eyes briefly moving over the man’s body before returning to his face.
"So? Kill him. We have no need for fat slaves." Drak snarled with an annoyed voice.
Ka’z casually nodded at the point and continued walking, not even bothering to ask who the goblin was. As far as he was concerned, the man was simply another member of the defeated clan who had chosen not to fight. Krov, however, stopped beside him and casually pulled out his dagger. Without hesitation, he drove the blade into the goblin’s throat.
A wet gasp escaped Molu as his hands immediately flew toward his neck and Ka’z suddenly froze. The others stopped with him as a familiar notification suddenly rang inside his mind.
[Ashmork Chieftain Killed]
Ka’z slowly turned his head, his stunned expression settling on Molu’s gagging figure. The goblin desperately clutched his throat as blood seeped between his fingers, his eyes wide with pain and relief.
Ka’z stared at him for several seconds before looking toward the notification only he could see, then back at the dying chieftain.
"That was their new chieftain?" he muttered in surprise.
Everyone froze.
Their shocked gazes shifted toward Molu, and for a moment, none of them could accept the pathetic looking goblin lying at their feet was the Cheiftain. If Ka’z had not been the one who said it, they would have assumed someone was making a joke at their expense. Yet they had already become accustomed to attributing the strange information Ka’z possessed to the Greater Kobold, so none of them questioned how he could possibly know that the man they had casually dismissed was Ashmork’s chieftain.
"Are you serious?" Krov muttered in disbelief.
Ka’z nodded with a stern look. "Yes."
"What a downgrade." Thrak laughed, and several of the others joined him.
Their laughter carried through the battlefield as they looked at Molu’s fallen body, but Ka’z remained silent. He could not help but disagree with their assessment. From what he had seen, the Ashmork Clan had not made any obvious mistakes in the way they had responded to the invasion. The problem had never been that they were incompetent. The problem was that Ka’z possessed the System.
Every time the goblins developed a plan, the System had either warned him about it or given him the means to counter it. Their best strategies had been dismantled before they could produce results. Molu had not been a poor chieftain. He had simply been placed against an enemy who possessed an unfair advantage that no ordinary person could have anticipated.
"Let’s go," Ka’z said.
The others nodded, and they continued toward the center of the village, following the screams and cries that had been growing louder with every step. Eventually, they reached the village square, where hundreds of goblins had gathered together. Most were women, children, and elderly goblins who had nowhere else to go.
They sat tightly packed together, many hugging their children while others clung to one another with trembling hands. Some were crying quietly, while others stared at the surrounding kobolds with terrified expressions, too afraid even to speak.
Mi’ya’s group had surrounded them, preventing anyone from attempting to escape. Several bodies were scattered around the edges of the gathering, including males, females, and elderly goblins whose skulls had been crushed during the struggle to contain the crowd.
Bigi and Bruk stood on opposite sides of the square, their massive bodies making it clear that anyone attempting to run would have to get past them first. Both kobolds continued barking orders at the civilians, demanding that they remain seated and keep quiet.
The moment the civilians saw Ka’z’s group enter the square, terror filled their eyes. Several children immediately buried their faces against their mothers, while some of the adults instinctively pulled their families closer. At the same time, excitement appeared in the eyes of several of Ka’z’s companions after seeing the sheer number of civilians gathered there. They had conquered the village. They had won.
But Ka’z’s eyes immediately settled on the corpses surrounding the crowd.
"They tried to attack Bruk and Bigi... They had no choice," Gruk quickly explained when he noticed Ka’z’s expression.
Ka’z’s eyes narrowed further, but he said nothing. Even if he intended to reprimand them, this was neither the time nor the place. They had been attacked in the middle of a chaotic battle, and hesitation could have gotten them killed. He simply allowed the matter to pass for the moment before his attention shifted toward the System panel hovering at the corner of his vision.
[New Sub-mission Acquired: Attack And Destroy The Ashmork Clan]
[Completion Requirements:]
[Kill the Chieftain][Completed]
[Kill the Tribal heads][2/3]
[Kill the Chief Shaman][Completed]
[Steal the Red Scripture][Incomplete]
[Burn down the entire village][Incomplete]
"Loki is the last one left..." Ka’z muttered to himself.
Once he killed Loki, who was obviously the leader of the last remaining tribe, only two objectives would remain. He needed to obtain the Red Scripture and burn the rest of the village to complete the mission. His eyes moved across the frightened crowd before he finally stepped forward, stopping several meters away from them.
"The Red Scripture... Where is it?" Ka’z asked.
The entire crowd immediately fell silent.
The civilians exchanged knowing glances, but none answered. One after another, they lowered their heads, hoping that remaining silent would somehow protect them. Ka’z’s expression slowly hardened as he watched them refuse to speak. He waited for another moment, then casually pulled his battle axe from his side.
Swish!
The blade swept through the nearest group before anyone could react. Several heads flew into the air, including those of women and elderly goblins, while their bodies collapsed into the dirt. The entire crowd recoiled in terror, screams erupting from every side as people desperately pulled their children closer. Ka’z raised his battle axe again, his expression remaining completely cold as he prepared for another strike.
A woman immediately threw her hand into the air.
"It’s in the shrine! We have always kept it in the shrine!" she cried desperately.
Only then did Ka’z stop. The axe slowly lowered as he looked toward her, and the woman trembled beneath his gaze, desperately hoping that she had given him the answer he wanted.
"Show him," Ka’z said, pointing toward Gruk.
The woman nodded so quickly that her entire body shook. "Of course, I will!"
Ka’z gave her a dry nod before turning toward Bigi. "Go with him too. Just in case she tries to do something stupid."
"Yes, Captain." Bigi nodded enthusiastically before following Gruk and the woman as they moved away from the square.
Ka’z watched them disappear between the buildings before finally turning his attention toward the southern gate. Even from the village square, the orange glow of the flames was visible above the rooftops, while smoke continued rising into the night sky. His frown deepened as he sensed movement approaching from that direction.
Mi’ya approached him cautiously, her bow still in her hands as she looked toward the same area. "What now?"
"We wait..." Ka’z replied, his eyes remaining fixed toward the southern gate. "The last and main threat is heading our way. It’s my job to welcome him with open arms and put an end to this permanently."
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