The panel floated over my claw. Meanwhile, Val kept talking about the elders, but I barely heard him.
I was too busy watching the runes shift and rearrange themselves.
When it stubbornly refused to vanish, I jabbed it with a claw. The thing reacted like I'd startled it.
A line popped up:
[System Tutorial Available Open?]
I rolled my eyes. "Finally."
I hesitated before hitting yes, mainly because I was afraid I would get thrown into a mini dungeon and forced to fight.
The system reacted instantly, its voice neutral and almost bored:
[Delivery System: Explanation Mode Activated]
Great, a talking system.
[This system's focus is delivery. The user will receive quests primarily related to transporting goods, items, or resources.]
"So I'm a delivery kobold now," I exhaled. "You know it's not a bad job at all, especially with the market right now."
Val looked at me. "What?"
"Nothing, just talking to myself."
The system ignored us and continued:
[Current range: Local World Only
Future range: Multiversal Delivery once the user reaches required strength]
My steps slowed, the sense of crisis building slowly in me.
"…Multiversal? Like… other worlds?"
"No way! What if I went to an eldritch reality, or even worse, a world filled with spiders," I screamed internally.
I've hated spiders since I was a little kid, mainly because they have too many hairy limbs and eyes.
[Correct], the system said in a tone: "Not my problem."
Okay, I had to admit that part was cool. Like, imagine going to a world with only women and though, who knows, maybe some girls are into fluffy guys.
"Alright system, you've managed to convince me here."
The system didn't stop but looked at me as if scared of the chaos inside my mind.
[Receivers may rate your service. The higher ratings increase the quality of rewards.]
"So I'm rated now," I said with a sigh. Honestly, I hated being rated, mainly because people back on Earth had a screw loose and would even rate you 0 stars.
Handsome guys always got five stars just for breathing. Typical.
[Some deliveries have no deadline, such as your current quest. However, special deliveries may require completion within a time limit.]
I took in the info quietly until the forest became behind us. We kept walking to an open field, and there I saw it.
A large camp appeared, wide, bustling with all kinds of sounds.
Small kobolds chased each other between tents. I think they were playing hide and seek. How did they know it was here? I really want to know.
Meanwhile, adults were sharpening weapons and chatting in groups of five people.
"Man, it felt… warm." Even though they were monsters, they were acting like one big family.
My chest tightened for a moment. Ragnar must've had deep memories in this place, because thanks to my doc skills, I could feel a very strong reaction from this body's subconscious.
Val walked ahead proudly, waving his massive arm at the camp.
"We're back!"
A few kobolds turned their heads. When they saw us walking towards them, their expressions became bright.
"At least the brat didn't become wolf food…" they said, laughing it off. I know they didn't mean it, because in the kobold community we all cared about each other.
I smirked. "Thanks for searching for me."
At the same time, at the entrance stood the kobold chief, an old kobold with deep scars on his nose and dark brown fur.
Beside him stood his wife, the tribe healer. She was very young, 30 yo, and the daughter just behind both of them.
His wife rushed at me, checking my body for any oblivious wounds.
The original Ragnar was always the quiet and polite kid, which made him likable by many in the tribe.
The most who liked him was the chief's wife, because one time she complained about her needing a herb that grows only on cliffs.
She needed it as a cure for her daughter's illness.
Ragnar, hearing that, didn't hesitate even once and rushed to get it for her. After three days, he finally came back with the herb.
Since then, she always liked Ragnar's kindness and self-sacrificing nature.
"Ragnar, dear, are you alright?" she asked, brushing her hands against my fur. It was both soft and warm.
I had to focus to keep my eyes on her face. She was… well, hot for a kobold. The original Ragnar didn't see her as a woman.
He couldn't figure out her true feelings, and he always thought she just liked him like family.
But I'm here now, the upgraded Ragnar, and of course, I'm gonna make a move on her, but only if she gave me a green sign.
And honestly, she already did many times, because in this world, kobolds were open-minded about their needs. Plus, her feelings for him had been accumulating since he was a little kid, bound to burst at some point.
Then I looked at her. She had a curvy body, tight cloth wrapped around her chest and hips, just barely enough to hide her big ass and breasts.
I made a promise to myself. Once I evolve, I'll finally approach her properly, and see if she would accept my advance or not.
"But let's stay calm. It's not the time yet," I mumbled to myself.
She looked at me the same way a woman looks at a man. She didn't even bother to hide it.
"I heard you went missing last night," she said. "We were worried. You're always so t, ahem, I meant polite… We thought something bad happened."
Hearing those words, I realized something: "I love my Kobold life now."
I nodded calmly. "I'm fine. Just… lost my way back to the tribe."
Her daughter stood behind her, arms crossed, staring at us. She had sharper features than her mother. She has a tsundere personality, saying many lines that contradict her feelings.
Her body was as fiery as her personality, with a slim waist coupled with wide hips.
Each one of them was important to me, in her own way.
She sniffed at me. "You shouldn't walk alone at night."
I shrugged, my shoulders relaxing. "I've already learned that the hard way."
The chief watched us with his stern face. "Good. As long as you're alive. Go rest. Kalia will come to you to check your wounds."
The moment those words fell, I saw the chief's wife jolt and smile a creepy smile at me.
But before she could say something, Val walked past her, dragging me along with him.
Then we reached an old hut, our home.
Inside, a single kobold woman sat at the wooden table, peeling onions while sniffing.
She was our aunty, not a blood relative, but just a kobold who took us in when our parents passed away.
She had a gentle look with a softer expression. Not flashy like the chief's wife, but comforting in a warm way.
Just by sitting on that chair, I could tell she had wide hips, enough for her flesh to spill out from both sides of the chair. It was shaking as if she were lifting the world's burdens.
Her eyes looked at me. "Ragnar!" Then she stood immediately.
I didn't wait for her to come. I moved fast, walking towards her and hugging her tightly.
"I'm fine," I said. "Nothing happened, I promise."
Her arms wrapped around me in return, squeezing with that mix of relief and anger.
"You scared me," she said. "Both of you."
Val scratched his head, embarrassed because he ignored the tribe's orders and stayed all night in the forest looking for me.
I pulled away gently and sat down, my eyes moving to the system panel still floating.
The quest was still the same one from before:
Deliver 30 Valva to the Goblin Clan.
But something caught my attention, a new line at the bottom. So I pressed it:
[Items Prepared: 30 Valva]
Makes sense. I can't go deliver Valva if the system didn't prepare them for me.
As for my way to deliver to them, I think I know someone who actually can help me from inside.
She was known as the goblin chief's daughter, a mighty female warrior enough to hear about her in many tribes.
She was responsible for the negotiations between the goblin tribe and the others. Surprisingly, goblins had many departments.
Once she hears about my plan, I think she will totally accept.
I leaned my back on the wall, my claws tapping the table rhythmically.
Val looked at me. "What are you thinking, brother?"
I smirked slightly.
"I have delivery to finish."
He blinked. "What, since when were you responsible for delivering goods?"
"Believe it," I replied back at him with a smirk.
Aunty frowned. "Ragnar, you just got home, and Kalia didn't come to check your wounds. Wait until she comes."
"I know that. But it's really important."
My eyes drifted outside the window toward the trees. The goblin village was close, just a river separating our two tribes.
"Hmm, decent plan," I muttered, convinced that my plan was bulletproof. But little did I know, the goblin chief's daughter's reaction would be different.