Daichi threw his fist at the blond guy, and the man flew out of the room through the window, which was made of a balloon.
Lilith: "Won't this cause us trouble?"
"What trouble?"
Malik: "I mean the guy you just threw out of the window."
"What guy?"
And so, the issue was resolved. Lilith and I left the ball and returned to our room to sleep, while Malik said he would stay a bit longer. It wasn't hard to tell he wanted more cookies. We had only one bed to sleep in, so Lilith and I had to share. This place felt like a cliché hotel.
Lilith: "Make sure you don't do anything weird while sleeping."
"These are bold words for someone who was peeking at me naked."
Lilith: "I-I wasn't looking at you, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, let's just sleep because tomorrow is going to be a big day."
Despite still being tired from the tournament, I quickly fell into a deep sleep even though I had been sleeping for three days. When we woke up, Lilith and I met with Malik, and then we all went to the town square to buy masks to conceal our identities. We entered a boutique that sold masks.
"Hello, I want to buy masks for the three of us."
Shop Owner: "Of course, I have some beautiful masks that will fit you perfectly."
The shop owner brought three masks; a black one for me, a white one for Lilith, and a gorilla mask for Malik.
Shop Owner: "This is the only mask we have that can cover your face. I'm sorry about that. If you want, I can make a custom mask for you in a few days."
"No need, this mask is perfect for him."
A big, always hungry gorilla.
After getting our masks, we bought some inconspicuous clothes and started planning until nightfall. To execute my plans, I needed a dozen white sheets, so I used my portal ability to return to the Monster Kingdom.
When I returned, the scene was incredible. I hadn't been here for a long time, so I thought things might have gone wrong, but everything looked great. The village renovations were complete, with tents for everyone, work areas, play areas for children, storerooms, and plenty of fields. Dagger appeared beside me.
Dagger: "Welcome back, sir. We've been expecting your return for a long time."
"Wow, I didn't even feel that I came."
Since I last saw Dagger, he seemed to have become much stronger. I wanted to check his level and stats, and I was shocked by what I saw. He had already reached level 41 and acquired the assassin class, along with several skills. The reason I didn't notice him approaching was probably one of his abilities. His stats had greatly increased, and when I checked the stats of the rest of the village, the former goblin chiefs were already at level 30, and even our regular residents were at least level 20. Everyone seemed accustomed to the village. Lizardmen, half-humans, goblins, and little children. It felt like something was missing...
Two wyverns suddenly flew to me. They were Sweet and Chilli, who jumped on me and started licking me all over.
"Hahaha, calm down, kids. I missed you too."
They were almost 3 meters now, steadily growing stronger.
Dagger: "Sir, we continued to develop and protect the village as you wished. Later, we tamed the wolves in the forest and added them to our side, making hunting and tracking easier. Also, Lady Lilith told us that not all animals need to be killed and that we can benefit from some. So, we started catching creatures like the Black Ox and White Sheep in the forest, using their milk and wool near the farming area."
"You've made great progress. It looks like the village is even more crowded than before."
Dagger: "Actually, sir, upon hearing that we united here, monsters without a place to go started pouring into our kingdom. At first, only a few goblin groups came, but later, lizardmen also began to arrive. Additionally, the relatives of our half-human friends also came, and with their arrival, our kingdom's reputation among half-humans has spread even more. We're in a truly crowded situation now, but everything is going well. Our food storages are completely full, and all our animals are fed. Our soldiers continue to work every day, and Hobgoblin has become quite skilled at reporting, so we made a special tent for him. I've also started forming a special assassin team with the people I believe are the most loyal."
"Wow, I can't believe my eyes. You've really managed everything well in my absence. Give me a minute to check the status of the village."
[Region]
[224 Goblin
88 Warrior Goblin
54 Mage Goblin
59 Healer Goblin
167 Lizardman
34 Warrior Lizardman
123 Half-Human
29 Warrior Half-Human
1 High Mage Goblin
1 High Warrior Goblin
2 High Healer Goblin
1 Assassin Goblin
1 Scribe Goblin]
Extras:
[2 Wyverns
38 Black Oxen
24 White Sheep
18 Beast Wolves]
The total population is 784?! We've become almost a community of 1000 people. So, how many houses do we have in the village now?
"Dagger, it seems like you've done even more than what you told me."
Dagger: "Hmm, really? What else could we have done besides protecting and strengthening the village? I'm sorry, boss, I'll be more careful."
"No, this is good, keep it up."
Let's see what they've accomplished.
[Region]
[80 Tents
1 Warrior Training Ground
1 Mage Training Ground
2 Healer Tents
2 Magic Research Tents
1 Barbarian Chief Tent
60 Warehouses
56 Fields
2 White Sheep Farms
1 Black Ox Farm
3 Campfire Areas
16 Watchtower]
This place is growing incredibly fast. Considering how full our storages are and that we can gather resources even from monsters, we'll soon be able to make significant strides in trade. I bet people can't obtain resources from monsters as easily as we do, so we can gain a clear advantage in the market.
"I'll have a few more things for you to do later, but for now, there's something I want from you..."
I completed my plan, opened a portal, and returned to Drynsoll, waiting for the night. When night fell, we all put on our masks and clothes and set out. When we arrived at the old cathedral, we noticed that there was no one around. As soon as we entered, the door closed behind us.
Lilith: "What's happening?"
"Calm down, don't let your guard down."
A light suddenly appeared in front of us, and Lebron appeared.
Lebron: "Welcome, sir. Please, let me show you the way."
We stopped in front of a wall, and when Lebron touched the wall with his staff, a door opened, revealing a staircase leading down. As we descended the stairs, we reached the place where slave auctions were held. People were sitting in chairs as if watching a show, looking at a stage in the middle. Lebron told us we could sit wherever we wanted, so we chose a discreet spot. Later, Lebron took the stage.
Lebron: "We thank all our guests for being here. You can be sure that tonight, we will present very special pieces. Especially, we saved the piece everyone's been waiting for until last. So, let's call our pieces one by one."
Lebron began calling and introducing the slaves one by one. People were raising their hands, offering prices, and buying slaves. Afterwards, the purchased slaves were sent backstage. According to what Lebron said, when the auction ended, the slaves were bound to their owners with some kind of magic, and thus, the slaves couldn't defy their owners. All the slaves were sold one by one, including half-humans, children, and even a few monsters.
Lebron: "And here comes our last item that everyone's been waiting for! He's a sent one and has quite powerful protective abilities! A young and handsome lad in his twenties, we made sure he didn't lose anything from his beauty due to good care! Here is our number 1 slave!"
As I expected, the person who appeared was none other than Aiden. They had covered his eyes with some kind of fabric, but it was evident that it was Aiden. Despite what they claimed about taking good care of him, I could see scars on his arms and body. I swear I will save you, Aiden, and take revenge.
Lebron: "Let's see the bids. Our first bid comes from the gentleman with the bird mask, a whole 1 million! A good start for such a piece. The lady in red on the right bid 10 million. Do I have an increase?"
Well, all we had to do was wait for the auction to end and rescue Aiden secretly when everyone left.
"100 MILLION!"
Lebron: "WOW! THE GENTLEMAN WITH THE GORILLA MASK BID 100 MILLION!"
A gentleman with a gorilla mask?
"MALIK! You foolish idiot, what are you trying to do? Now all the attention is on us!"
Malik: "What? I thought the one who said the highest number wins."
This guy's intelligence seems to be a miracle, usable only in battle.
"Ah, damn it. PLAN B!"
[Portal]
Using my portal ability, I brought Hançer and the team, whom I had instructed to prepare in advance, from the village to here. They had all put on the white sheets as I had instructed. Through the holes they had opened for their eyes, they could see ahead, and because they moved quite fast, they looked like flying ghosts.
Masked Man: "These are Ghosts! The ghosts of the Cursed Cathedral!"
Masked Woman: "RUN AWAY!!"
Hançer and the team continued to scare people by running around, until only Lebron and the slaves were left.
"What are you going to do, Lebron? Release the slaves and let me end your life quickly."
Lebron: "You thought you were the only one with little helpers, didn't you? Well, luckily, I made my preparations beforehand. Even if I die, you won't escape this trap!"
"Trap?"
I noticed something shining beneath us. While following it, we fell into a trap.
"Hançer!"
At the last moment, I managed to jump and push the dagger out of the magic trap. The trap activated, and suddenly everything went dark.
I didn't know what was happening outside, but it felt like I had been teleported to a different place. Could this be some kind of mental magic trap?
???: "So, we finally meet, huh?"