What would it mean to him if this was true? What consequences would that have?
As he scrolled further down, something caught his attention. He stopped and went back to see if what he's seen was actually real. And it was. There, in front of him, was the ghost of the sadistic goblin he hated so much.
Soup, Daughter of the Blue Minotaur.
"Why is she here? Don't they know she has died days ago?"
When he chose Soup, an error message appeared. The new interface in front of him had the words "DECEASED" written out in all red. Seeing this, Tanuki nodded with satisfaction.
"Good."
There was something else though. Soup's previous missions were still on display.
[ Mission: Catch 1 Female Goblin! ]
[ Challenge Rating: 0 ]
[ Rewards: 2 Goblin Warriors ]
[ Description: Hello, cuties! Have your latest adventures been going badly? Are your men not fighting the way they used to? Don't worry! Bring me one living female goblin and I'll trade it for two well-trained and brutal goblin warriors! Quite the deal, yeah? But wait, there's more! This mission can be repeated as many times as you wish! So don't worry, just bring as many women as you can! ]
Despite her beastly nature, Soup knew how to manipulate people. This mission read more like a shady advertisement for two broken-down cars instead of a quest with godly rewards.
Tanuki closed the interface. He was disgusted by the mission, knowing what fate awaited those traded for goblin warriors.
What's worse, he had a good idea of why this trade would be beneficial for Soup in the long run. Thankfully, if what he thought was true, at least he was fast enough to save Maduka from those horrors.
There was just one thing that bothered him more than anything. He turned towards the tent to face Maduka. The little goblin girl sat on the ground and played around with the tiny bugs she collected.
"Hey, Maduka! Remember when we were camping and…"
"We camp again?" She jumped up with a smile on her face.
"Yes, we will, but… back then you said you never had a family. Is that true?"
Maduka's smile subsided. It was thinking time.
She jumped into a handstand, then placed her head on the ground. The green of her face gradually turned redder as more and more blood flowed to her brain.
She spoke with a serious expression.
"Nope! Maduka never had a mama or papa. Maduka's first memory is… Soup! Yes! She is standing next to a tall man. Da tall man and Soup are speaking. Then Soup brings Maduka into da tribe. It's like da teleportation thingy we did! It was so much fun!"
She laughed, remembering how small she was back then. Tanuki was her exact opposite. A horrified expression sat on his face as he began to understand the truth about their situation.
A tall man. Teleportation to the tribe.
It was a theory up until this point, but what Maduka told him just now has verified his worst fears. She was a victim of this quest, which meant three things for Tanuki:
One, there was someone else with the ability to take missions from gods.
Two, there was someone else with his own Gaia Core.
Three, whoever this person is, he's been in this world for much longer than Tanuki.
And while all of these would've been good for the boy who longed for the humanity he's left behind in his past life, when he looked at the childlike innocence in Maduka's smile, he knew that this was only bad for them.
There was another human with a Gaia Core, a much more developed world, and the evil to sacrifice those beneath him. He was a friend of Soup, and now an enemy of Tanuki, the boy who killed that man's collaborator.