Chapter 345: Shocking Conspiracy
On a Large Tree over ten meters tall, three Heads poked out from the hidden Tree Leaves, their Gaze fixed on the thousands of Little People on the Grassland, and the Black-Robed Unknown Entity on the Platform they surrounded.
"Alice, what do you think that is?" Turning my Head slightly, I breathed onto the Little Ghost's moist ear.
Her sensitive spot was suddenly attacked, and the Little Ghost's Body went soft, almost falling down. After finally steadying herself, she gave me a troubled look. Deeply influenced by Church ideology, she blurted out almost without thinking.
"Needless to say, it must be the evil Church! We must kill them all later, leaving none behind."
Her delicate little face puffed up, and her large silver Eyes radiated a full Presence, looking as if she had an irreconcilable feud with the other side. Sweat, I really don't know what kind of Knowledge was instilled in her when she was a Candidate Saintess.
"What about Little Molly?"
I turned my Head to the other side. Probably seeing that I wasn't paying attention to her Suggestion, the Little Ghost blinked her troubled beautiful Eyes, her small hands constantly making small movements... Ah, don't pinch a Man there, you idiot, it hurts a lot!!
"Investigate, kill."
Unlike the Little Ghost's beautiful silver Eyes with a dreamy hue, bright yellow Eyes, as beautiful as Gems, quietly looked over.
The conclusion was similar to the Little Ghost's. I didn't expect the Three-No Princess to be a hawk as well. Actually, look, these Little People are quite cute, like gray hamsters standing on two legs and magnified more than ten times...
"Gaa—oh gaa—oh—"
The Dead Dog's strange cries came from behind me. It seemed to feel that as a member of the Team (Captain?), it should express itself somehow, but I completely couldn't understand what it was saying.
Speaking of which, can a Dog climb a Tree? Did I really pick up some strange Creature whose meat quality I couldn't confirm was delicious?
Investigate, how should I start? Should I secretly follow that Black-Robed Unknown Entity later? I don't know what its Strength is like, but it doesn't seem very powerful. Because if it were truly an Existence I couldn't match, I should be able to feel its Presence here.
Of course, it's not impossible that its Strength is so formidable it can completely conceal its Presence, making me unable to detect it. Although this possibility is small, it's not zero. However, it's still worth taking the risk to Investigate. Why are Adventurers called Adventurers? Adventure, adventure. If you don't dare to take any risks, and you become suspicious and afraid to act when you encounter someone without Presence, then what kind of Adventurer are you? Just call yourself a Shrinking Turtle.
Just as I was thinking about how to get around the thousands of Little People and see if I could Investigate something from the Black-Robed Unknown Entity, the Three-No Princess seemed to sense my Idea (it would be strange if she didn't notice, since I was constantly staring at the Black-Robed Creature). She tugged at my sleeve, nodded lightly, and then used her slender finger to point at the Little People below.
Did she want me to start with the Little People? Relying on our long-standing Tacit Understanding, I immediately understood her meaning and had a sudden Realization. Yes, why insist on focusing on the Black-Robed Unknown Entity whose Strength is unknown? Wouldn't it be simpler to start with the simple-minded Little People?
Thinking of this, I also guessed the Three-No Princess's intention. Was she telling me to play cosplay like Phoenix? Before he left, he gave me the Outfit for dressing up as a Little Person—which was actually an Indigenous Feather Hat, commonly known as a Rooster Hat. Its Stats were 0 Defense, +100 points of Attention, -1000 points of Charm. When being watched by Onlookers, there was a 100% Chance to use Level 99 Finishing Hand Blade on them. When being mocked, there was a 50% Chance to use Level 999 Indiscriminate Sonic Attack on any Life or Non-living Object within a ten-mile radius (must be cast using a certain musical instrument).
Oh, I forgot. There was also the Strange Dye to smear all over my Body, turning me pitch black. Its Stats were emitting male Little Person Hormone...
I really didn't want to use it. With these two cosplay Set items laid out before me, I knelt on the ground powerlessly. I felt that if I used them, I would lose something important, like my dignity as a Human...
Unfortunately, I seemed to be the only one in the Team suitable for it. Little Ghost and Three-No Princess are girls, and no matter how thick-skinned I am, I wouldn't feel right letting them try it. As for the Dead Dog...
Even if I smeared its Intestines black with Dye, it would be instantly exposed. There really is a fundamental Difference between four-legged and two-legged Creatures. What a Tragedy.
Powerlessly, I was caught by the Little Ghost, who seemed to fear nothing short of chaos, and she frantically smeared the Dye on my face and limbs, not even sparing my belly... Hey, wait, wait, I said, please spare that area! I don't know if it's my imagination, but I always feel like this Little Squirt is particularly fixated on that spot. Are you still in the budding stage of a Maiden's thoughts, filled with Curiosity about "why there are differences between males and females"?
After I was completely dressed up, the Little Ghost stepped back a few steps, looked me up and down, and immediately rolled on the ground clutching her belly. I shifted my Gaze to the Three-No Princess's face. Ah, she avoided my Line of Sight. She ignored me and turned her Body away. She must be trying to laugh, absolutely trying to laugh.
"Poof poof—"
I looked down and saw that it was the Dead Dog patting me with its short little front leg. Behind its U-shaped mouth, two dots curved slightly, outlining a comical Dog smiling face.
"Gaa oh gaa oh... (As a Clown, you are very qualified. Hmm, The Princess will be merciful and make an exception to allow you to become The Princess's exclusive comedian.)"
"Then I'm going. You guys stay here obediently and don't wander off."
I gave Little Snow and the others a look, then gritted my teeth and glanced at the Three-No Princess and the continuously laughing Little Ghost. Beside them, the Dead Dog, whose mouth I had gagged and tied up and hung from the Tree, was watching me with a Wrathful Gaze while desperately struggling.
Pushing aside the Grass, I pretended to be a Little Person who had just finished relieving himself and was hurrying back—although I didn't know if Little People actually needed to relieve themselves...
The Meeting over there seemed to have ended. The Black-Robed Unknown Entity was still on the Platform, sitting cross-legged as if resting with closed Eyes. The thousands of Little People, on the other hand, had scattered into groups of two or three, gathering together in clusters. It was easy to see from their positions. Firstly, the Projected Dwarfs, the Corrupted Dwarfs, and the Normal Dwarfs—these three types of Dwarfs, who didn't get along with each other, were clearly divided into three areas.
From this, some information could be gleaned. Firstly, the Inner Heart of the Projected Dwarfs held only hatred and Slaughter towards Life forms. Although they were likely restrained by that Black-Robed Unknown Entity and didn't attack the other two types of Dwarfs, they definitely wouldn't gather together.
As for the Corrupted Dwarfs, on one hand, they looked down on the Projection whose Brains were only filled with Slaughter. On the other hand, they probably felt the Normal Dwarfs were being hypocritically pure, just like young people who have one foot in society—they look down on hypocritical socialites but also scoff at students with naive dreams. Thus, they pleased neither side and were in a conflicted state.
As for the Normal Dwarfs, their Ideas were much simpler. They were the orthodox ones, while the Projection, the Corrupted Ones, and so on, were all Other Species.
Even if these three types of Little People were Reluctantly gathered together, they were still wary of each other. This might be a Weakness that could be exploited.
Secondly, after being divided into three distinct areas, each area wasn't very united either. The Projection were fine; their Brains were only filled with Kill, Kill, Kill. They had no concept of Tribe, so they were mixed together. But the Corrupted Ones and Normal Dwarfs were different. They had a strong concept of Tribe, especially the Normal Dwarfs. So even when gathered in one area, they didn't truly merge, but rather kept a certain Distance from each other, organized by individual Tribes.
Tsk tsk. Even the relationships among the simple-minded Little People are so complicated, I kept sighing. Then I looked left and right, searching for suitable Prey. I definitely couldn't go to the Projection side; if I did, I would surely be subjected to a Group Beatdown. The Corrupted Ones wouldn't work either, regardless of whether they welcomed me or not. Their Intelligence is even lower than Normal Dwarfs. I estimated that the difficulty of finding a talking Dwarf Shaman among them would definitely not be less than fighting them collectively.
So the only choice left was the area of the Normal Dwarfs. But I couldn't be careless. That side was closer to the Black-Robed Unknown Entity on the Platform. My disguise might fool the Little People, but it might not fool it. So I had to quietly, quietly go a bit further around and find a suitable Target.
I hunched my Body, trying to move along the Edge as inconspicuously as possible, searching for a suitable Target. But Wishes are beautiful, and Reality is cruel. In my current appearance, it seemed somewhat difficult not to attract attention. If it weren't for the smell issue, those Little People would probably have already charged up swinging their Weapons.
Under the Gaze of hundreds of pairs of Little People Eyes that had spotted me, I moved while breaking out in Cold Sweat, constantly muttering in my Inner Heart, 'You didn't see me, you didn't see me...'
Finally, I let my Gaze fall upon an Elite Level Dwarf Shaman. Its Tribe had about two hundred Little People, all gathered on the outskirts of the open area, relatively far from the Black-Robed Entity. It was a good Target, so I approached...
"Wa... wayo..., this... this Younger Brother... brother..."
After getting closer, I greeted the Dwarf Shaman who was looking at me with a wary expression because it had noticed my arrival. I felt like my tongue was getting tied trying to imitate their simple-minded and thick-tongued way of speaking.
"Wayo, bro... brother, your Figure... is very tall."
This Dwarf Shaman said this. Its Voice was actually much more fluent than the Dwarf Shaman Phoenix had Deceived last time. Could it be that Elite Level ones have higher Intelligence than Elite Rank ones? Probably. Tsk, I should have known not to deliberately learn that awkward way of speaking. They probably just thought I was a Minor Boss Rank Dwarf Shaman and would treat me with respect.
The problem was the same as the one Phoenix encountered last time, so without thinking, I pointed below myself, then awkwardly twisted my limbs and continued to stammer.
"Be-be... below, two... two..."
After saying this, I felt a bit awkward myself. This was also why Little Ghost and the others were making fun of me—although my Figure was only considered slender among all Adventurers, compared to Phoenix's delicate type, I was still taller and sturdier. The problem lay here: my current Physique, rather than looking like three Little People stacked together, looked more like five, with one and a half stacked horizontally and the remaining half stacked on top...
However, the thoughts of the Dwarf Shaman weren't that complicated. As long as you emitted the smell of a Little Person, and your Physique wasn't too outrageous, they generally couldn't see through it. As the saying goes, there are all sorts of birds in a big forest, and deformed individuals weren't uncommon in the Little People Tribes.
Two? The Elite Dwarf Shaman immediately showed a look of admiration in its Gaze. Riding just one below was already tough enough for it; this brother was truly talented! But then it thought, even if he's born so tall, isn't he still not as Smart as me (the Dwarf Shaman's basis for judgment was the fluency of the other party's language)? Thus, a Sense of Superiority in Intelligence arose spontaneously in the Elite Dwarf Shaman's Inner Heart, and its wariness towards me lessened considerably.
Completely unaware that I had been looked down upon by a Dwarf Shaman, I continued to talk to it. As expected, it became suspicious of the Black Robe I was wearing. I still explained according to Phoenix's answer. Moreover, just in case, I had also tailored a low-quality black Cloak bought from a shady merchant to fit the Figure of a Dwarf Shaman. It finally came in handy now.
By the way, this was my first time touching a needle and thread, so everyone can imagine for yourselves the shape of the low-quality black Cloak after being tailored.
After the Elite Dwarf Shaman received the Cloak, it was delighted in its Inner Heart: This Young Person is good, he knows how to respect his Senior. He has a future. Then it couldn't wait to put it on, like a certain Monster from Journey to the West putting on a certain monk's Kasaya. It shook it a few times showily. Seeing the envious Gaze of its subordinates, it couldn't help but let out strange giggling laughs.
Actually, I originally wanted to remind it that it still had to rely on the Coolie Small Dwarf it was riding below to walk, so it would need to dig at least two holes under the Clothes. Otherwise, it would be quite a Tragedy. But seeing how happily it was laughing, I decided against it.
Uh, I don't know why, but seeing the Dwarf Shaman wearing the Black Cloak, I always felt a bit strange. That's right, like Big and Small Mario. It was before eating the Mushroom. I was after eating the Mushroom...
A cheap Cloak completely dispelled the Dwarf Shaman's suspicion towards me just like that. Even the Staff with the Inferno Skill I had prepared wasn't needed. The Dwarf Shaman enthusiastically invited me to visit its Tribe. I should be glad it wasn't their mealtime, otherwise it would have been a Tragedy like last time with Phoenix.
"Bro... brother, why is everyone ga... gathering together?" Seeing that the time was right, I asked casually.
"You... you don't know?" The Dwarf Shaman seemed very surprised to hear me say that.
"I... I just arrived. My Tribe... was at... attacked by Big Monkeys, only... only I am left. It de... delayed me..."
The Dwarf Shaman immediately showed a look of Realization. So he was attacked by Big Monkeys!
If you were to ask who the Little People hated the most, besides the Elf Race, it would be the Adventurers who always liked to take their Life and destroy their Tribes. Of course, they also frequently skinned, disemboweled, boiled, steamed, and pickled Human Civilians.
"It's... it's okay, brother will... will avenge you later. After dealing with the Long... Long Ears, we will ca... capture those de... detestable Big Monkeys and roast them to eat."
Long Ears? That must be the Elf Race. Dealing with Long Ears, does that mean they are going to deal with the Elf Race? This might make sense. Seeing that I had found a Clue, my Spirit was immediately lifted.
"Brother, you... you still haven't told me... wha... what is everyone doing... doing here?"
"Oh... right, right. Listen to me, we Li... Little People are about to do something bi... big..." The Dwarf Shaman danced with Excitement, and combined with the mismatched black Cloak on its Body, it looked exactly like an old demon from Black Mountain.
From the mouth of this simple Dwarf Shaman, I finally learned the purpose of their gathering here. That's right, it was to deal with their Arch-rivals, the Long Ears, which is the Elf Race. The Little People, who had always acted alone, were now finally joining forces to attack the Elf Race. This was definitely a piece of News that could shake the entire Sanctuary.
However, it wasn't just that. If this were the only location, I would just need to kill the Black-Robed Unknown Entity on the Central Platform, who was the planner and Organizer. Without a leader, this operation by the Little People would just fizzle out. The best outcome would be the leaderless Little People losing the Bind of the Black-Robed Creature and starting to kill each other.
But things weren't as simple as I imagined. What surprised me even more was that it wasn't just this one location. According to what this Dwarf Shaman knew, there were three similar Organizations in the entire Spider Forest. And in the Vast Wetland, Flayer Jungle, and those even larger Forests that hadn't been named by Adventurers, there were countless more such Organizations. Calculating the number of Little People in each Organization based on the area and Quantity in the Spider Forest, I was shocked myself—there were easily over a million Little People gathered together, eagerly preparing to completely eradicate the Elf Race, the thorn in their side.
Holy crap. The Rogue Encampment Monster Attack Event a few years ago, the total Quantity of Monsters from ten Villages didn't exceed five hundred thousand. That was already a massive War for me back then, but compared to the Quantity of these Little People now, it seemed insignificant again.
It seems the Elf Race is in trouble this time, I Pondered. Although surprised in my Inner Heart, I didn't feel any anxiety or similar Ideas. Leaving aside whether the Elf Race can handle this calamity, even if they can't, what does it matter to me? In the hearts of us Adventurers, the Elf Race has always played the role of being arrogant, self-righteous, and looking down on Humans like Dogs. They despise us Humans, so why should we Adventurers bother to give them face?
Take one thing I know about, for example. These Elf Race members, for no reason, would always run to our Human Gathering Place, which is Kurast. They would dress up sneakily to buy Necessities. Don't you look down on us? Then why come buy our things? What's even more frustrating is that they can swagger in and out of Kurast, but once we Adventurers enter their Territory, we are warned not to approach. Why do you get to do that? I admit that perhaps Humans did harm you tens of thousands of years ago, but so many years have passed. In the face of the Hell Clan's invasion, isn't it time to let go of the Grudges accumulated over generations?
In short, if I were in charge, the first thing I would do is put up a Sign at the entrance of Kurast that says, "Elf Race and Dogs, No Entry." Disgusting, these petty Elf Race members whose Caution is smaller than a butt hole...
"Oh, right. Th... that bl-bl-black... black thing... wh... who is it?" After figuring out the inside story of their big operation this time, I rolled my Eyes and pointed at the Black-Robed Creature on the Central Platform, asking.
"Shh... shh..., brother, be qu... quiet... If it hears you, you'll... you'll be ki-ki... killed..."
When talking about this Black-Robed Creature, the Dwarf Shaman looked terrified and repeatedly shushed me, his speech becoming less fluent. He told me that this "Black-Robed Lord" had already Killed many of their brothers. Every day, it would call dozens of brothers over, and then they would hear horrifying screams and the sounds of tearing and chewing. At this point, the Dwarf Shaman trembled all over and told me in the quietest Voice of his Life: He had secretly gone there to Investigate and only saw bloodstains and bones scattered all over the ground. Based on his many years of Experience, those brothers must have been eaten alive by the other party.
Uh, many years of Experience...
"Wh... where did it... it come from?"
"I heard it's from a very... very large Plains, re... red..." The Little Person shook his Head and rattled off all the information he knew in his Brain, leaving me completely Confused.
"Then wh... why do we... do we have to listen to it?" I quickly interrupted the Dwarf Shaman's disorganized and increasingly Confused language.
"It has the Proof of the Dwarf Race Strongest of our Little People race in its hand." The Dwarf Shaman gave me another answer that made no sense. Forget it, never mind that, I've already found out the important stuff anyway.
After understanding the cause and effect of the large gathering of Little People, I didn't forget about my own trivial matters. From the mouth of this kind Dwarf Shaman brother, I finally found out Gheed's whereabouts.
Not far from here, there was another Dwarf Tribe, the largest Dwarf Tribe nearby. It was said that the Quantity of Little People there numbered nearly a thousand. The rumor about stealing something from Kurast originated from this Tribe.
Moreover, our Organizer, that Black Robe brother on the Platform, will personally go there tomorrow to "recruit" this Tribe. With that thing called the "Proof of the Dwarf Race Strongest" in his hand, it's probably a sure thing.
After saying goodbye to the Dwarf Shaman, I happily trotted back. The first thing I did was put the Rooster Hat on the Dead Dog's Head, and then I found a small river nearby to wash the disgusting black stuff off my Body completely.