Ch 2.
Noble Fighter, Rhea Ranger, Elf Wizard, and Human Monk all stood outside the entrance to the goblins lair.
"The goblins have made their base into that old elven fortress. We'll go in during the day, when they're asleep, watching for traps. We can take out the guards and rescue the girls they took from the village. Got it?" Noble Fighter said and they nodded.
They then took out each a roman style helmet and put it on their heads.
The 2nd rule of goblin slaying was that you always covered your head, since goblins will sneak up on you and throw rocks t the back.
The 'Slayer Code' by Wizard had clear instructions in regards to this.
The 'Slayer Code' was a small booklet that was freely given to any adventurer that took a Goblin Slaying quest and was mandatory reading if you wanted to be given said quest.
And it would prove its value today!
They went pass the guards, which Rhea Ranger downed easily with a few arrows and a dagger.
Making their way pass the entrance they snuck inside the main building which housed the goblins. They were all asleep.
The 3rd rule of goblin slaying said clearly that you never sneak pass sleeping goblins, you kill them , otherwise they will eventually wake up and swarm you.
The 17th and 29th rule of goblin slaying was clear on how you did this task, namely you did it one sleeping goblin at a time, cover his mouth and stab trough the eye with a long dagger or bludgeon them to death
For the 39th rule of goblin slaying stated clearly: 'Goblins can still fight even with severed limbs and their gust spilling out'.
It took a while, but eventually all the goblins in the first room were all killed.
After that they continued to advance and after going through a tunnel, they saw a girl's body, naked lying on the ground.
Rhea Ranger was about to run to her, when a hand from Elf Wizard stopped her.
Rhea Ranger turned and saw her making a one and four sign with their two hands.
The 14th rule: 'A body left in the open is clearly bait for a trap.'
Remembering that particular rule she clenched her teeth in hatred and they avoided the body.
After they reached a particular kind of room deeper into the fortes, Noble Fighterremembered the 5th rule: 'Goblins always set up ambushes, but ever expect to be ambushed.' So they set up their own.
As they got deeper and deeper into the fortress they eventually could not continue killing goblins in their sleep without eventually alerting a few.
And just like it stated in the 11th rule' Goblins always fight in great numbers, never alone' they came, there must have been about 20 of them, so the party ran back to the place they had set up trap and as soon the goblins came they detonated the claymore like mine that made a wall of explosion that blasted shrapnel at them that ripped the goblins to bits.
They made their way deeper into the cave, there they found a cage and in it was the mangled corpses of what was left of the woman that had been kidnapped.
Rage gripped the all female party.
Just then Human Swordsowman felt a great blow to the head; she turned and saw that half a dozen goblins had snuck up on them.
She would have been dead now if it hadn't been for the 2nd rule, and with the anger from seeing the boy of the girls, the 4 man party charged and cut down the goblins.
Once they were dead and gone the party looked around.
The 48th rule stated clearly: 'Always look for survivors, if there is a single pebble unturned you will find a goblin hiding there after a successful raid.'
And so they did, and when they found a throne of bone, Human Monk remembered the 75th rule of goblins slaying. 'They hide their young behind loot and furniture. Always search that to find the target'
And so the 4 man group did so and once they threw away the chair, they found the goblin children.
They looked to helpless and innocent, but as they gazed at them the goblin children stared back and in their eyes the 4 woman could see hatred and lust for their torment in them.
Seeing that and remembering what happened to the village women, all 4 of them remembered the 1st rule of goblin slaying: 'Kill Goblins!"
It happened almost in the blink of an eye and with that every goblin was dead.
The 4 exited the fortress and stopped just outside to take a breather and finish their task.
"These creatures deserve to be hunted down more than anything else." Rhea Ranger said as anger gripped her, as she gazed at the wrapped bodies of the village girls that were to be taken back to the village for burial.
"They aren't because they avoid nobles domains. Because of that no serious bounties are on their heads. So they remain anything from Obsidian to Silver threats, but the reward is barely porcelain rank, so there isn't much of an a reason for strong adventurers to go after them. Except Goblin Slayer and his allies." Elf Wizardsaid in sadness and anger.
If it hadn't been for the Slayer Code, they would have been walking unprepared and into a potential horrible death, and yet no one except GB recognized the threat they posed.
"This is a decent building. Good structure, keeps you warm in winter, cool in summer and with a bit of polish can be respectable." Human Monk said all of a sudden.
"What do you mean?" Noble Fighterasked.
"Adventurer's money goes to rent, food, armor and weapons. Nobody is using this place, so it's a free building, a quite good and very defensible one. What if we fixed it up and offered free rooms to anyone that goes goblin slaying?" Human Monk added.
"Kill a nest and you get a free room for the night? With that…..the goblin slaying quest wouldn't be looked at as bottom work, it would actually be profitable! It would mean an almost 30 to 40% increase in profit from goblin slaying quests!" Elf Wizardsaid, realizing Human Monk 's line of thought.
"And it's in the middle of the forest, which means plenty of game, nuts, berries, fish in streams and fresh water! We could also offer free meals in a common cafeteria as a bonus!" Rhea Ranger added to the groups thought.
"Also it's in the middle of a forest, which means plenty of wood for winter! Winter is the worst for rookie adventurers, the spend it in cheap lodgings or barns. But if killing goblins means free food, thick walls against cold, snow and rain along with plenty of wood for winter, then…..Then come cold seasons and goblins slaying will be in style! They will flock to kill them!" Noble Fighteradded and the 4 women looked to each other in glee realizing what an opportunity they had here.
"And since Goblin Slayer is a silver rank adventurer, if we can convince him to sponsor this many rookies will flock to join a Silver Ranker's house." Rhea Ranger said.
"Do you thing Gobl-..No, I mean do you think Lord Goblin slayer would agree to this?" Rhea Ranger asked.
"Yes." A voice said from t behind them and the 4 women jumped from the sudden presence.
They turned and saw that it was Goblin Slayer himself that stood there.
"G-Goblin slayer-sama! W-What are you doing here? How did you sneak up on us, without me detecting it!?" Rhea Ranger said, looking a bit sheepish from what they talked about.
"I was finished up a Goblin Slaying quest east of here and took a detour to this site before going back to the guild. I saw the dead guards and then I saw you all coming out of the fortress, I did not sneak, I walked next to you without masking my presence."
GB said in an honest tone that made you realize that he was not bragging about that, nor was he berating them or mocking them for letting their guard down, he was just….bad with people.
Goblin Slayer walked passed them and started going inside the fortress.
"Where are you going?" Human Monk asked.
"Going to gather and burn the goblin bodies, then build gate and patch the roof." He answered and continued to walk inside as the 4 surprised girls followed him inside.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Noble Fighter asked.
"You asked if I would sponsor this place and I said yes. So I have starting working on it." He replied and started gathering goblins in a pile outside the fortress.
The other 4 girls gave each other a look that said: 'men!', shook their heads and started helping as well.
The work took about 3 days, and by then they had a roof that would only keep the wind out and a gate that did much the same, they would need more work for autumn rain and the winter snow, but for now it was a functional summer lodging.
"It's starting to come together." Elf Wizardsaid as the 4, now 5 group looked at their work.
"With this we should be able to help with the goblin quests and attract more adventure to them."
"More adventurers, means more dead goblins. More dead goblins is good." Goblins Slayer said and made his way back to the Guild.
The party made out of 4 woman would linger on for a few hours to catch their breath and freshen up, they didn't have GB endless thirst for slaying and took some time off.
They cleaned up, had a small pick nick and looked at their work in pride.
They still had a long way to go, but they knew that was they did just now was the beginning of something grand.
Something that would shake the world from its core, and plant a seed that would grow into something that would be the bane of goblins, and many other monsters.
It was the beginning of 'Slayer Keep'.