And now, all her efforts were rendered worthless because of her identity as a daughter.

 

She loved her family, but she also wished for praise and expectations from them, rather than being commanded with a tone of entitlement to do things.

 

In this expedition against the goblins, the eldest son of Count Earl Rogerson will also be going, and it’s as clear as day that her parents’ intention is to use her marriage as leverage.

 

There was no need for a big fuss to subdue mere goblins. Count Earl Rogerson only organized a large force to kill all the goblins there to vent his anger and salvage some reputation.

 

It was a unilateral slaughter, and there was no chance for her to make any contribution during this process. She received hints from her parents to seize the opportunity to get close to the eldest son of Count Earl Rogerson.

 

In fact, her parents didn’t know that when she was a junior knight, she had met the eldest son of the count. He had expressed clear fondness for her and even boasted about making her, someone of humble status, his lawful wife.

 

But she refused.

 

Her reason was simple: she was a knight, and she would carve out her own path with her own sword!

 

“I hope those ugly and lowly goblins can put up a fight, giving me a chance to shine. If I could become a senior knight, maybe…”

 

Cas O’Bleu sighed lightly, not holding any expectations for this trip.

 

After all, they were just goblins.

 

However, unbeknownst to anyone, a significant change was occurring among the goblins on the outskirts of the Misty Forest.

 

“Reform, there must be reform!”

 

Chen Le shouted loudly in front of hundreds of goblins.

 

He could not bear it any longer.

 

Looking at the several hundred goblins, all of them warriors at a glance, with at most a few archers and scouts, but not even one knight among them? These goblins, who had been excluded from the central area, had such exaggerated professions. When the real human expeditionary force arrives, won’t they be wiped out in one fell swoop?

 

“Line up, I’ll assign you new occupational positions.”

 

As the Goblin Emperor, Chen Le possessed imperial authority and could designate the professions of young goblins.

 

The first goblin designated by Chen Le was the third purple demon goblin he had discovered on the outskirts of the Misty Forest.

 

The purple demon goblin had quietly played a role during the first two human invasions.

 

Its profession was a goblin commander, capable of commanding snakes in battle.

 

This profession wasn’t created by Chen Le; it appeared in its hidden job list.

 

All goblins capable of receiving professions had their own exclusive list of hidden professions, and what Chen Le could do was to make selections from these professions.

 

The young purple demon goblin, capable of controlling snakes, was an unexpected delight Chen Le found in this goblin area.

 

Now, Chen Le’s first priority was to increase the number of goblin archers, goblin knights, and goblin scouts.

 

In human society, becoming a knight was a noble profession reserved for nobles. Mature knight combat skills, exquisite knight armor, and even a batch of horses were required. Ordinary families simply couldn’t afford the expensive cost of nurturing a knight.

 

But goblins were different. They could carry wooden boards and wield wooden spears as knights. They could also ride wolves, wild boars, or even their own kind.

 

Would it be excessive to have goblin knights with two goblins wielding long spears bound to their backs, in addition to wielding huge clubs as perfect tank soldiers?

 

Chapter 11: The Goblin Horn of Resistance

 

The goblin legion in the outskirts of the Misty Forest was prepared as follows:

 

57 elderly or infirm goblins

 

126 goblin foot soldiers

 

53 goblin warriors

 

33 goblin archers

 

11 goblin scouts

 

10 goblin knights

 

1 goblin lookout

 

4 white demon goblin giant soldiers

 

1 purple demon goblin snake commander

 

2 purple demon goblin shamans

 

Total: 291 green-skinned goblins, 4 white demon goblins, 3 purple demon goblins

 

Unfortunately, these four white demon goblins were already quite old, and their professions had been set; they couldn’t be changed.

 

Among these goblins, the most noteworthy was the goblin lookout that was discovered by chance.

 

This goblin had vision abilities several times higher than other goblins, and by constructing a concealed lookout post on tall trees in the forest, it could give crucial warnings during human invasions.

 

The moment war begins, every second counts.

 

With the right timing and location, when manpower and equipment might be overwhelmed and extremely disadvantaged, having the right timing and location could be crucial for them.

 

Among the 57 elderly or infirm goblins, some of the older ones with higher experience and intelligence could still contribute to the strategist team, but most of the others would likely be phased out by the goblin population.

 

Even young and powerful goblins had to fight with all their might to survive, let alone the elderly, weak, and sick ones.

 

The survival strategy of the ugly and humble goblin race was to continually eliminate goblins who could no longer adapt to survival, have healthy goblins give birth to more goblins, and then continue the process of elimination.

 

However, as the emperor, Chen Le would still take care of them well, after all, there were still so many wild vegetables and insects that needed them to taste-test for compiling the herbal compendium. How could he easily give up their lives?

 

If they could handle wooden spears in pit traps and conceal themselves, they could actually become an unexpected elite force.

 

Under Chen Le’s arrangement, all goblins had their own duties, which was perfect.

 

Realizing their significance, the three purple demon goblins muttered goblin language in admiration of their emperor’s greatness.

 

More traps were being set up, and new knights and scouts were also undergoing necessary training as quickly as possible.

 

The next time the human expeditionary force appeared, they wouldn’t know how many goblins would perish.

 

Currently, there seemed to be no end in sight to the human encirclement of the goblins, and Chen Le’s desire for a safe and secure life seemed distant.

 

In the goblin cave, Lila held her growing belly day by day, feeling increasingly nervous.

 

It seems like… it’s only been the fourth day since she was captured, and the third day since we… uh, got together, and she’s already pregnant for just two days, isn’t it? ╥﹏╥

 

Outside the room, Chen Le brought Lila her meal for the day, gazing at her slightly swollen belly with a pensive expression.

 

Typically, goblins give birth to around seven offspring in one litter. When the pups are born, except for the unexpected case of Chen Le, regardless of the species, they usually weigh less than a pound, with some even less than half a pound.

 

Because of their small size, childbirth isn’t as painful as it is for normal women.

 

However, childbirth does somewhat deplete a female’s vitality, and in severe cases, it can affect a female’s lifespan. Therefore, it’s necessary to regularly supplement Lila with medicines that enhance her vitality.

 

But such medicines are scarce here.

 

Most of the herbs that enhance additional vitality grow in the area frequented by the Exploding Monkeys, where human adventurers often appear as well.

 

The limited vitality-enhancing herbs they have can only sustain Lila alone, so if Chen Le wants to expand his harem and raise more powerful offspring with human females, there will be issues with both the herbs and the food supply.

 

Sitting down by the edge of the bed, Chen Le gently caressed Lila’s small head resting against him.

 

Let’s just wait and see for now, for this first batch of newborns.

 

The next day, on the fifth day since Lila was captured, the vanguard of the human siege on the goblins appeared.

 

The humans hadn’t formulated any plans; they relied solely on absolute force — five squads of ten men each.

 

Forty-five guards and five knights, under the guidance of the adventurer Keltan, penetrated the outskirts of the Misty Forest’s goblin area and headed straight for the goblin cave.

 

As the vanguard, their objectives were simple: to rescue Lady Lila before the arrival of the annihilating force, eliminate all the low-level goblins living here, and, as a secondary objective, enter the area inhabited by the Exploding Monkeys to gather a batch of vitality-enhancing herbs.

 

The appearance of humans disrupted the tranquility of the goblin area.

 

The goblins suddenly became frantic and disorganized.

 

Normally, when humans encountered them, they would kill them on sight; if they found a pair, they would even string them up together and disdain their low value.

 

They hadn’t been wiped out entirely, relying entirely on the unexpectedly strong growth rate that evolved one day. The cost, however, was that they became smaller, had shorter lifespans, and became less like subhumans.

 

But when the horn sounded from on high, spreading through the forest, all the goblins recalled the supreme command of their emperor. Their instinctive obedience quickly calmed them down, and they began to act in an orderly manner.

 

It seemed that some things had already changed.

 

…

 

Legend has it that the birth of the first goblin stemmed from a mistake made by an elven princess.

 

One day, a noble-blooded elven princess disregarded the objections of her people and fell in love with and coupled with an ordinary human, violating the tribal rules of the elves and incurring a curse from her elven kin.

 

 The elven princess’s elven bloodline weakened, no longer favored by nature. She lost her powerful strength and her long lifespan.

 

Envious of the inept humans gaining the love of the beautiful elven princess, a dwarf wizard, in his bitterness, cursed their offspring with his dying breath to be forever uglier and more repulsive than dwarves.

 

Since then, the lowest of the subhuman races, the goblins, with their green skin and diminutive stature, despised by almost all races, were born.

 

…

 

“Le, what’s that sound?”

 

In the goblin cave, Lila put her hand to her ear, listening intently to an odd sound.

 

Chen Le fell silent for a moment, then gently stroked Lila’s small head and replied, “It’s the horn of life.”

 

Chapter 12: They Will Buy Time for the Emperor

 

“Fifty-one people, vanguard team…”

 

Through the eyes of the goblin lookout, Chen Le frowned thoughtfully as he observed the invaders.

 

The invaders’ objective was very clear.

 

In the absence of similar weapons, the combat power of a fully armed human guard equaled four sturdy goblin warriors wielding crude weapons and wooden shields, or two goblin knights riding mounts with incomplete equipment, or one-third of a white ghost goblin giant warrior.

 

A team of fifty-one people would be enough to match all the goblins here in a frontal confrontation, and they were only the vanguard.

 

It was impossible for them to truly resist the human invasion. Even if they succeeded this time, if they failed, there would be another attempt.

 

Compared to the humans outside, they were too weak now.

 

The key was to retreat into the central area of the Misty Forest before the enemy advanced here.

 

“Have no goblins come out from the central area yet?” Chen Le asked the old purple goblin, knowing the answer from the muttered words of the purple goblin.

 

The speed at which the human team appeared was faster than he had anticipated.

 

According to Lila’s description of the route distance, the raiding team should not arrive until at least one day later.

 

However, it was highly unlikely that the reinforcements would arrive within the day.

 

“I leave this to you.”

 

Chen Le stood up and, accompanied by four goblin knights and ten goblin warriors, headed towards the central area of the Misty Forest.

 

With the advantage of traps and terrain defense, the old purple goblin and its companions were enough to resist the human vanguard team.

 

When the human team realized something was amiss, they would soon choose to withdraw from here.

 

Before the reinforcements arrived, they would not choose to perish together with the goblins here.

 

Even before the appearance of the first and second human teams, Chen Le had already begun arranging a crucial matter, focusing on the women among them.

 

They needed a female corpse to stage the illusion that Lila had been killed.

 

The extermination of the goblin area on the outskirts was already a foregone conclusion. However, if Lila’s whereabouts were not confirmed, Count Earl Rogerson would likely not relent. He might even dispatch people to continue searching and rescuing deep into the central area of the Misty Forest.

 

If the survival area of the goblins in the central area was discovered, it would inevitably lead to greater turmoil. The incoming human team might be several times the current strength, or even include the presence of advanced adventurers and the forces of the duchy.

 

It was unwise to confront such powerful enemies only ten days after being reborn into this world.

 

Now, when the human vanguard team broke through layers of traps and encirclement to enter the abandoned goblin cave, they would discover a charred female corpse. Subsequently, the fire would spread rapidly, preventing them from taking the body out and causing the cave to collapse, further concealing the truth.

 

This was Chen Le’s initial arrangement.

 

Angry humans would choose to retreat from here and then attempt to block the escape routes from both sides, awaiting the arrival of the subsequent annihilation team, finally conducting a thorough sweep of the goblins here.

 

As for the goblins escaping into the central area of the Misty Forest, humans would not pay them any mind. In their perception, even if there were goblin shamans and giant warriors, they would soon be killed by the powerful beasts in the central area.