The Forest Feeds No Idle Goblins

Chapter 264: Chapter 237: Choosing a Blessing

Shire knew full well how he had obtained the "Blessing of the God of Earth and Life," and he knew he was definitely not the Life God’s Divine Chosen One.

If the Earth Church truly took him for a Divine Chosen One, then things would get complicated.

He was currently planning to lead his clan to expand further into the forest, preparing to take down the Feathered Serpent Kingdom and push his influence to the Darren Lake region. If he were identified as a Divine Chosen One at this moment, he would probably be taken away by the Church. His clan would then face one of two fates: first, they would be abandoned—after all, how could a Divine Chosen One who was meant to lead the faithful also lead a group of goblins? Second, to display its respect for life, the Church would turn his followers into cannon fodder.

In fact, the higher-ups in the Earth Church would never accept him as a Divine Chosen One in the first place. How could a grand church of humans possibly let a goblin be their Divine Chosen One?

But what if he were to spell it out for them? "I, Shire Merlot, am your Divine Chosen One. What you need to do now is figure out how to turn me back into a human."

It probably wouldn’t be long before his head was displayed on a table in the Plantagenet Royal Capital while a crowd of people happily swam in an ocean of Gold Coins. After all, 300,000 Gold Coins was a massive fortune.

’The Church probably has some way to verify if I’ve truly received a divine revelation. If I can’t pass the test, I’d just be a sheep walking into the tiger’s den.’ Shire shook his head slightly, resolving to convince Sofia no matter what and make her abandon the idea that he was a Divine Chosen One.

’I used to think these "Blessings of the Gods" were great, but now they seem like a mixed blessing.’ The thought that he would soon have to choose another blessing made Shire feel troubled. ’No matter what, I have to choose a blessing. And this time it’s the "Blessing of the God of War and Glory." I just hope it doesn’t attract the War God Church once it takes effect.’

The mere thought of those guys gave Shire a headache. The War God Church was full of people who constantly had words like "honor" and "bravery" on their lips. What’s more, all the major Knight Orders cooperated with the War God Church to some extent, and even the Adventurer Association had the Church’s shadow looming over it. If his territory became enveloped by the "War God’s Blessing," there was no guarantee some muscle-bound fanatics wouldn’t follow Sofia’s example and venture deep into the forest.

"Those idiots in Plantagenet City," he grumbled, rubbing his temples. ’Forget about some holy war. Those princes are already at odds with each other. Just start fighting already! The third brother should just find a chance to stab the second brother. That would solve it, wouldn’t it? Poison would work too.’

High-level court intrigue was always just that sharp and to the point.

As long as the Fran Kingdom fell into chaos, no one would pay him any attention. The whole "Divine Chosen One" matter would be forgotten.

’Should I find a way to send someone to Plantagenet City to investigate?’ Shire folded his arms, leaning against the stone wall as he mulled it over. ’Even though what Sofia said about me being a Divine Chosen One is nonsense, the future "holy war" in the Fran Kingdom might be a certainty. Scouting the situation in advance would make it easier for me to plan my own strategy.’

Unfortunately, he had no one on his team who could carry out this plan. Mary couldn’t be spared, Little John was still too green, Agatha was a Ghost Witch, and the other members weren’t even human.

’What about tricking Sofia?’ Shire mused, pinching his chin, but he quickly dismissed the idea. ’She’s too smart and can deduce a lot on her own. It’s almost impossible to fool her. The only reason she’s confused now is because of the blessing I forced and the Obelisk from the Ancient Times. If I actually tried to trick her, that Druid would probably see through it in no time.’

"Forget it," he sighed softly. "I’ll just focus on dealing with the Feathered Serpent Kingdom. This is more important right now."

Then, he called up his personal panel to check his current status.

[Tombstone Artifacts: Shire Merlot]

[Race: Goblin (Human)]

[Danger Level: 0.5, Trash]

[Subordinates: 807/1375]

[Personality: ???]

[Personal Ability: Group Dumbing Curse (Daily uses remaining: 0/5)]

[Own State: Advanced Transformation Curse (Negative), Heart of the Brave (Positive), Mother Tree’s Blessing (Positive), Blessing of the God of Earth and Life (Positive), Newborn Ant Queen (Positive, growing), Demon Lord’s Contract of Lust (Negative, ten years)]

[Title: Leader of the Forest South Group]

’I have quite a few subordinates now,’ Shire thought, studying the panel carefully. ’And Heart of the Brave finished its cooldown before the battle, so it’s ready to be used again.’

He clicked open [Heart of the Brave] and discovered that as Little John’s ability improved, the original 30-day recovery period had been shortened to 25 days. ’Not bad. It seems his recent combat training with the Skeleton Warriors and Caocao has really paid off.’

’But that’s also because improvements are rapid at the beginning. It’ll probably get slower and slower later on.’

Shire stood in place, about to do something, but then he suddenly remembered that the Druid maiden was still lying on the bed in the stone house behind him. He immediately walked a few quick steps away from the house.

After rounding a corner, Shire let his consciousness sink, arriving before the Black Obelisk.

The new, alien letters were no longer grayed out. Shire mentally intoned, "Activate."

At the same time, he selected the [Blessing of the God of War and Glory].

[The God of Battle and Glory blesses you and your domain. Your vanguard will be even more invincible, and wherever your banner flies, your soldiers’ hearts will follow. They will not rout easily and their morale will be higher. Honor will be cherished by your people, and they will become more confident. At the same time, you are blessed. Your wisdom influences your subordinates, and they will more easily grasp combat techniques to fight for you.]

’With this, my subordinates should gradually start to comprehend new abilities,’ he thought, raising a hand to stroke the rough stone surface of the obelisk, his head tilted back to look at the towering spire. ’I’ll also need to pay special attention to Nine-finger and Lame Leg. I wonder if the War God’s Blessing also affects Magic. If it does, then by combining it with the Naga’s Magic Potion, I can start granting my subordinates Magic Ability.’

On his domain map, a spiky red line appeared at the edge of his controlled territory, intertwining with the previous green, vine-like line that represented the God of Earth and Life, enclosing the border.

’The blessings of two Divine Beings,’ Shire thought, his gaze sweeping over the area he controlled. The large territory controlled by the Feathered Serpent Kingdom was not within the "double-lined" circle he saw after his earlier scrying. ’When I manage to forcibly yank away the blessings of all Four Gods, I wonder what the Four Great Churches will think.’

"You are the Divine Chosen One of our God of Light and Justice," Shire muttered to himself. "No, he’s the Divine Chosen One of our God of Night and Fate! Wait, no, he’s the Life God’s Divine Chosen One."

’They’ll probably end up fighting over it, won’t they?’ he thought with a sneer, a sense of morbid amusement welling up inside him.

WHOOSH— A light breeze blew past Shire, and he felt an inexplicable chill. ’A breeze? Inside the Fortress?’

Just as he was feeling puzzled, a faint sound reached his ears. The voice sounded ancient and was barely audible.

"They are very angry."

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