As we made our return trip, Taloress shared her experiences in the village while I went about my business. She told me all about the time she spent with the hunters, sparring with them and learning their techniques to make herself stronger. It was a wonderful idea, although I can't help but feel like Taloress was hiding something from me. As her creator, I could check her memories and see what happened, but if Taloress didn't bother sharing it with me, it probably wasn't anything important. Besides, it was better to respect her privacy.

I intended to continue the renovations of the cave once we returned, adding more rooms and facilities in preparation when Rella returns to the village with the equipment I needed. But when we neared the vicinity of the cave, Spider sent a mental message. Massster, we have intrudersss again.

“Dammit, what is it now?” I muttered tiredly.

As we neared the clearing, my fabric sense detected two groups of intruders.

The first group consisted of the familiar shapes of the goblins, although unlike last time, there were more than thirty of them in the clearing in front of my cave. Most of them were children, but there were two who had the shape of adult goblins. They didn't seem to be maliciously attacking my territory, or else they'd already be mincemeat inside Spider's mouth, but their postures were wary as they faced the other group.

On the other side of the clearing was a smaller group that only consisted of two people. Or rather, creatures. They were dryads.

I sighed again. I was starting to get tired of all the shenanigans happening in the forest. I expected a peaceful life while living out here in the woods once I claimed my own territory and scared off the other monsters, but all kinds of people and monsters keep coming to my territory like flies to shit.

“We gotta get back to the cave as soon as possible!” I called out to Mr. Marion. I left him in the driver's seat earlier so I could relax inside the wagon while playing tic-tac-toe with Taloress. So far, she won only once, and that's only because I lost on purpose since she was starting to get grumpy.

Mr. Marion urged Clip and Clop to run faster. I cursed as the wagon started shaking more fiercely, but I ignored it as I hijacked Spider's sight to assess the situation.

Spider was standing guard by the cave entrance, his body still as his tentacles stood ready to skewer anyone foolish enough to trespass further into my territory. I could feel my loyal puppet's eagerness to slaughter all the intruders in my territory, but unlike Taloress, Spider was smart. He knew he didn't stand a chance if all the intruders attacked him all at once.

Fortunately, the two groups of intruders didn't seem to come with any ill intentions, although the goblins and the dryads seemed to have a hostile relationship. They looked so close to coming into blows. The only thing stopping them from fighting was the fact that they were both on my territory.

Don't attack any of them, I told Spider. But if they attack first, then feel free to kill them.

With pleasssure, Spider replied.

Alone, Spider would become overwhelmed by the intruders' numbers if it came to a fight. But with my help, I could easily access the huge supply of fabric I kept inside the cave and use that to perpetually reinforce Spider's body.

When our wagon finally arrived in the clearing, both groups seemed to sigh in relief. Clip and Clop passed by both groups and parked the wagon in front of the cave as I stealthily slipped back inside Mr. Marion's body.

“And may I ask the purposes of your visits?” I asked loudly as I stepped down from the driver's seat and faced both groups at once, Taloress standing beside me. Spider positioned himself on top of the wagon with Tedd peeking from his mouth, behind the sharp, needle-like teeth.

The goblins seemed hesitant to speak, but when the dryads confidently approached me, the two adult goblins also started making their way over to our location.

The dryads turned out to be familiar acquaintances. One was the Sentinel I fought, Wennena, and the other was the airhead of a Steward, Disserla. Both of them eyed the goblins, the former with a sour expression while the latter with pure curiosity.

As for the goblins, one of them was the adult male that came to attack my cave several days ago, his face still twisted in the same glaring expression. He followed slightly behind another adult goblin whom I immediately knew was the true leader of the goblins.

Like the other goblins, the leader's head was bald, but the narrower jawline, slender body, and the two bulges on the chest indicated that the leader was a female. She was scantily clad, the thin rags serving as her clothing covering only the barest minimum. Her exposed skin was riddled with beautiful tattoos and she wore dozens of bracelets, necklaces, and knick-knacks, all of them made from the bones of animals. Her eyes had a sharp, intelligent gleam to them, and unlike the male who was busy glaring at the dryads, she stared right at me.

We better be careful with this one, I said to my puppets. Even if she's a goblin, she's smarter than she looks.

We ssshould kill her right now, to prevent any future threatsss, Spider hissed.

On it! Taloress excitedly said.

Oi, stay where you are!

As I struggled to keep my puppets in line, the two groups finally arrived in front of me. Wennena spoke first.

“Greetings, human. The Matriarch has sent me and Steward Disserla as a token of friendship between our two factions. From now on, you are free to make use of our services however you wish, as long as it doesn't come into conflict with the Dayadras' interests.”

“Hold on, what do you mean ‘token of friendship?’” I asked in confusion.

Wennena ignored my question as she stared at the goblins. “We can start our service by ridding your territory of pests.”

Despite not understanding the human language, the male adult goblin bared his teeth as he hissed at the dryad's obvious provocation.

“You'll do no such thing, Wennena. What you will do is explain to me what the hell the Matriarch sent you for.”

“I already said it. We were sent as a gift to solidify the friendship between our two factions,” Wennena said.

“Faction? I don't belong to any faction, Wennena. I'm just a lone man trying to start a business out in the middle of nowhere,” I replied.

“Don't be a fool, human. You are an Ascendant. You are a faction all on your own, even if you say otherwise.”

The female goblin suddenly looked at me more intensely, and try as she might to hide it, I could see a hint of fear in her expression.

“Hey, don't go telling everyone what I am, you stupid tree!” I shouted angrily. Wennena gave me a withering glare at my insult, but I didn't care. “And I'm not accepting any of your services. You can go back to your sanctuary or whatever.”

Wennena grit her teeth as she glared at me. “You dare refuse a gift from the Matriarch? I see that even as an Ascendant, you are still human, which makes you a fool.”

My puppets bristled at the dryad's insult, but I held them back. “You're free to think whatever you like, Wennena, but I never asked the Matriarch for anything. There's no such thing as a free meal, and I'm not about to owe your Matriarch a favor by accepting your ‘free’ services.”

The last thing I wanted was to involve myself in dryad business. When Selise and I left their Sanctuary, I was all too glad to leave them all behind and forget about them. There were just too many unknown factors with the dryads, especially with their Matriarch, and I didn't want to risk myself or anything I owned by involving myself with them. Heck, the Matriarch found out I was an Ascendant even though I hid my power well. Granted, she didn't take advantage of my secret, but that didn't automatically make her a friend. I bet she had her own hidden agendas, and I wasn't about to offer myself as a pawn to be played.

Before Wennena could further complain, Disserla kneeled before me with her hands clasped, her eyes wet with tears. “Please don't send us back to the Sanctuary! I don't want to go back to that prison!”

“Disserla!” Wennena hissed as she tried to pull back her fellow dryad, but Disserla fought against her.

“I promise I'll do anything!” Disserla cried. “Just let me stay heeere!”

I was about to refuse again when Disserla's next words made me freeze.

“If you don't, I'll tell Selise you refused us!”

I gulped nervously. “Nice try, but how are you gonna tell her when you're not allowed to leave your Sanctuary?” I said with a scoff, but in truth, my heart was beating nervously. This airhead of an idiot is blackmailing me?!

Wennena stopped pulling at Disserla and gave me a sly grin. “We are Dayadra, human. We have many ways to contact our friends. Any bird in this forest would be happy to serve as our messengers.”

Dammit, they can control animals?! I thought angrily.

We should kill them now to silence them, Master, Mr. Marion said.

These impertinent fools dare to use my friend to blackmail Master, Taloress said in simmering anger.

Looks like you're in a tight spot, Master, Tedd said as he chuckled at me.

You're not helping, Tedd!

“And so what if Selise learned that I refused you two?” I said with a steady voice. “At the end of the day, it's still my choice.”

Wennena shrugged and whistled. A large blue bird suddenly emerged from the trees and landed on the dryad's shoulder. Wennena retrieved something from her back, which turned out to be a roll of parchment, and handed it to the bird. “Bring this to Selise in Wildpost.”

The bird immediately took off.

“Stop that bird!” I screamed in panic as I sent dozens of threads flying after it, but the damn bird twisted around the air like an acrobat and dodged my threads easily.

Wennena started cackling in the background, but I ignored her as I commanded my puppets. Go after that bird!

Spider quickly took off, his tentacles slithering through the air in an attempt to catch the bird. Taloress followed suit, her arms splitting into countless threads as she waved them around, hoping to entangle the bird's wings. But their efforts proved futile as the bird just flew higher and higher until my puppets could no longer reach them and took off in the direction of Wildpost.

“Do you still want to refuse us?” Wennena asked with amused eyes.

I glared at her for a few seconds before finally conceding. Selise truly viewed the dryads as her friends and admired them, and if she learned that I refused to let them stay in my home and sent them back to their sanctuary prison, her wrath would fall upon me. “Fine! Fine! I accept your services!” I shouted angrily at Wennena. “Just bring that damn bird back already!”

“Yaaaay!” Disserla cheered.

Wennena gave me a triumphant smile as she whistled again. The blue-feathered bird came back to land on her shoulder, the roll of parchment held securely in its beak.

“Did you expect me to refuse your services in the first place and already prepared that letter for Selise?” I asked.

Wennena chuckled. “No. This is a letter from the Matriarch Herself, to be given to you upon your acceptance of our services. I was bluffing.”

My jaw dropped open in disbelief. I can't believe I fell for that!

“Fine, you win,” I grumbled. “Since you wanted to serve me so much, get inside the cave and clean it.”

Wennena had an indignant look on her face, but Disserla simply cheered and excitedly entered the cave. “Thanks, Mr. Marion!”

“I am a Sentinel!” Wennena exclaimed. “Cleaning is something only Stewards do. I will only accept orders related to security, and if you think you can order us about like servants, you will come to regret it, human.”

“Fine, then go guard the border of my territory to the east and stay there until I call you back,” I said with a wave of my hand. If they're going to force me to accept their services, then I'll make them regret it.

Wennena shot furious glances between me and the goblins before stomping away in a huff. She stopped for a second and threw the roll of parchment at me without turning back before continuing on her way.

I unrolled the parchment and began reading.

Greetings, Masked Ascendant

I hope the day finds you well despite these trying times. I formally greet you as our neighbor and ally to the Dayadra of the Wild Woods, and although my children have made unwise choices with their first encounter with you, let me extend my gratitude for your patient understanding as well as my apologies for any inconveniences they might have caused.

I hope you will excuse me if I skip through all other pleasantries and proceed straight to the point. Our time is precious, after all.

If you're reading this, then that means you have accepted my humble gift. Young and foolish they may be, Sentinel Wennena and Steward Disserla are some of the most talented Dayadra of their generation. Despite their flaws, I give my assurance that they will be forever loyal to you and honor your wishes.

With that said, I know you have some reservations regarding my gift. I understand if you have your doubts, especially when we haven't even met yet. Unfortunately, I'm afraid your doubts are well-placed, Masked Ascendant. I give this gift in exchange for a favor, but before I ask something of you, please know that I never had nor will I ever have malicious intentions toward you.

I request a favor, Masked Ascendant. When the last snow thaws and the flowers bloom once again, I invite you to my Hometree. I only wish to have a relaxed conversation, and you may use this opportunity to ask me any question you'd like. Do not worry for your safety, for I swear upon my power and my children that no harm shall befall you when you come as a guest of the Sanctuary.

May your life remain fruitful and your harvests bountiful.

- Nilara, Matriarch of the Wild Woods

“I fucking knew it.” I wanted to crumple the piece of parchment and stomp it into the ground, but that would be petty. The goblins were still watching me and I didn't want to act like a child in front of them.

The letter pretty much confirmed that my reservations about accepting the dryads' gift were wise, although it seemed my perspective may have been too paranoid. The Matriarch only wished to speak with me, which was pretty harmless considering the things I've encountered over the past month. Of course, I still had my doubts about it.

The Matriarch, whose name turned out to be Nilara, was quite friendly with how she wrote the letter, although I still refused to believe that she was a friend. True, she had been sincere and all, even acknowledging my doubts, but none of her words managed to assuage me of any of them. For instance, despite all her sweet words, I still had no idea what her intentions were, nor did she give any clue as to what she truly wanted. She didn't even tell me what the heck she wanted to talk about, and I doubt it was the weather. How could I trust someone who kept their interests hidden?

It was just like negotiating with merchants. I would gladly make a deal with a business partner and give them my trust not to stab me in the back as long as our deal proved beneficial for both of us. But if that same business partner suddenly gave me an offer that was too good to be true without telling me why he was offering it, I would only have myself to blame if I ended up getting the short end of the stick.

Maybe she just wants to be Your friend? Taloress asked. Anyone would like to become friends with Master.

Hah, that's a good one, I said with a dry mental chuckle, much to Taloress' confusion. Anyway, let's forget about this Matriarch business and focus on present matters first.

I shifted my attention to the two adult goblins who were waiting all this time. The male looked impatient and kept fidgeting as he waited for me to address them, but the female's expression remained serene. If she was impatient, she showed no sign of it.

“What do you guys want?” I asked the goblins. I turned to the male. “Last I remembered, I told you never to come back. Are you that curious to see what would happen if you did?”

Despite my threatening words, the male showed no signs of comprehension. Unsurprising, given that goblins don't understand human language. I don't even know how they intend to speak to me when they can't—

“I beg forgiveness for any offense caused, Gammilu Abratu, but we beseech you to listen to our plea,” the female goblin suddenly said in heavily-accented but understandable English as she bowed deeply to me.

My jaw dropped in awe, and when I remained silent from shock, the female goblin went on. “We of the Stone Axe Tribe request succor from Gammilu Abratu. The past months had been unkind to us, and if we continue as we do, the Stone Axe Tribe will be no more come the year's end. We ask for Gammilu Abratu's protection, and in return, we offer our servitude.”

It took me a few more seconds before my surprise subsided, and when I finally comprehended the goblin's words, I was surprised all over again. “What do you mean protection?! I'm not taking care of goblins! And what the heck is a Gallimu Atrabu?!”

“Gammilu Abratu,” the female goblin corrected. “It means ‘Merciful One’ in our language, and we call you this in honor of the mercy you have shown my children when they came to attack your territory. We will forever remain in gratitude for that, Gammilu Abratu.”

“Then if you're thankful, you will lead your kids away from my territory and not bother me anymore,” I said in annoyance as I made a shooing motion.

The female goblin suddenly prostrated herself before me, shocking not only me but the rest of the goblins as well. “Please, Merciful One! Without your protection, the monsters of the forest will tear us apart. With most of our hobgoblins no longer with us, nothing else protects us from the fangs and claws of the forest's savage monsters. My children stand no chance against the Wild Woods.”

I was about to refuse resolutely when I made the fatal mistake of looking over to the rest of the goblins. Except for the two adult goblins in front of me, the rest were all children, their ugly faces staring at me with equal parts fear and hope. Their bodies were dirty and malnourished, some of them sporting wounds that looked several weeks old. They reminded me of the destitute people back on Earth who were ignored by the rest of society. But for these poor goblins, instead of ignoring them, society labeled them as monsters and hunted them down like pests. Dammit, why did I have to look at them?

The female goblin was weeping now, and upon hearing her sobs, the rest of the younger goblins began crying as well. Their cries were guttural and sounded more like wild animals in pain, but their sobs conveyed their sorrow all the same.

Master is so heartless, Tedd muttered.

Shut it, Tedd.

My mind worked double-time as I tried to assess my possible choices and their consequences. If I took in the goblins under my protection, I'd be sheltering monsters, and I could only imagine what the villagers of Wildpost would do when they learned of it. The best-case scenario was losing their trust and getting banned from ever entering their village again. The worst-case scenario would be their hunters deciding to launch an attack to destroy the goblins and probably getting rid of me along the way. Belka was already difficult enough to face, but the Night Wardens would probably join in. Facing Wildpost's wrath was out of the question.

On the other hand, letting the goblins fend for themselves would be the easier choice. It wouldn't bring Wildpost's wrath upon me and the only things I have to sacrifice would be the goblins' lives and my conscience. Yeah, that's out of the question either.

Or You could just kill the goblins Yourself, Master, Taloress suggested. I pretended not to hear her.

I heaved a loud sigh as I came upon my decision. The goblins realized it too and became silent, their beady eyes staring right at me with so much intensity it felt like they were gazing into my soul.

In the end, I decided to shelter the goblins. I wasn't even surprised by my decision anymore. When I saw the pitiful state of the dozens of goblin children, a part of me already shunned the idea of leaving them out to die. People viewed them as monsters, but the true monsters were those who would mercilessly label an entire race as such just because they were different from the rest. If goblins were feral and rabid like wargs or dire wolves, I would have agreed, but after seeing tears and sorrow on what was supposed to be a monster's face, I already knew that the goblins were just victims of a global genocide.

“Stop crying and stand up,” I told the female goblin. “I've decided to take all of you under my protection.”

The female goblin quickly wiped her tears and spoke to her brethren in their guttural language. A moment later, all the goblins were cheering and hooting, jumping around while shouting “Gammilu Abratu!”

Despite my reservations, I couldn't help but smile at the sight. Choosing to take in the goblins opened its own can of worms, but after seeing them cheering and celebrating like normal children, the small part of me that had been considering the idea of letting the goblins fend for themselves disappeared completely, although I couldn't help but feel a hint of fear. The consequence of my action will eventually come calling, probably in the form of an angry mob banging on my doorstep. Not like I have a door to speak of.

A commendable decision, Master, Tedd said as we watched the goblins celebrate. I believe the Great Helen would be proud of your choice.

The thought of Mom's approval brought on warm feelings. The dread that had been slowly creeping up vanished, replaced by a determination to stand by my decisions until the end. Besides, I already accepted the dryads' services anyway, and if I'm not mistaken, they're also considered monsters from a human perspective, if only a bit more tolerated than the rest. Since I'm going to have to hide the existence of dryads in my territory, might as well let the goblins join in.

“By the way, I forgot to ask for your names,” I said to the female goblin once they finally calmed down somewhat.

“I go by the name of Zerza, Shaman of the Stone Axe Tribe, and from here on out, I serve the Merciful One,” Zerza said as she gave a deep bow. The other goblins followed suit clumsily. “My fellow hobgoblin is called Kral, the last remaining warrior of my tribe.”

The male hobgoblin bowed as well, although not as elegantly as Zerza did. It was obvious that bowing was a foreign gesture among the goblins, which was why Zerza confused me. She knew the human language and customs, despite being a goblin.

“Nice to meet you, Zerza, Kral. I don't know where to hide your tribe yet, so for now, just make use of the space in this clearing. I don't have any guests scheduled to visit my home any time soon, so don't worry about other humans arriving,” I said. “You guys have your own food?”

“We can forage for our food, Merciful One,” Zerza replied. “This part of the forest is rich with bugs and herbs we can eat, and if we run out, we can subsist on the barks of trees.”

“Uh, you don't have to do all that,” I said awkwardly. Did they really survive all this time on bugs and bark? “I have a sizable stock of food you can distribute to your kids, although you're gonna have to ration it. My supply isn't infinite.”

“The Merciful One is too generous,” Zerza said as she bowed again.

“Stop with the ‘Merciful One’ shenanigans. Just call me Mr. Marion.”

“It is an honor,” Zerza replied without losing a beat.

After laying out some rules for them to follow, I hurriedly retreated into my cave to check on Disserla. I had to make sure the idiot didn't break something.

●●●

“Are you sure this is the right choice?” Kral asked in the goblin language as Gammilu Abratu disappeared into the cave.

“Of course it is the right choice, because it is the only choice left to us,” Zerza answered back. “Would you prefer to go back to what's left of our home?”

“At least there, we are our own masters,” Kral replied with a hint of anger. “How can you offer our freedom so easily to a human, especially one that is allied with the dryads? We are the mightiest goblin tribe in the entire forest! We deserve better than to follow a stinking human.”

“We are the mightiest tribe in the forest because we are the only tribe left, you imbecile,” Zerza hissed back. “If you want to keep your freedom, then feel free to go back to our home where Urka will inevitably come back to tear you apart. If you don't want to end up like the other tribes, then use your brain for a moment and accept the fact that this is the only choice left to us. Only the masked human is powerful enough to keep the vile Urka away.”

Kral grumbled as he crossed his arms. He understood Zerza's reasoning, but he could not come to terms with it. When the Shaman proposed several days ago that they beg for the masked human's protection, Kral recoiled in indignation. It was only the threat of the tribe's total annihilation that forcefully convinced him to go along with the idea.

But now that they were here, he was regretting their decision. The thought of obeying a human like a dog was infuriating, but the truth in Zerza's words stopped him from being unreasonable.

“Believe me when I say I am as unhappy as you, Kral,” Zerza said as she stared at the cave where the human resided, her eyes gleaming. “Serving a member of the race that had been hunting us down like animals makes me sick, but unless you want our tribe to end up like the others, we have to endure.”

“Damn that vile beast,” Kral muttered with clenched fists as he remembered Urka. “How long will we serve this human? Don't tell me our tribe will forever be beholden to a human's will.”

“Be calm. I wouldn't wish to serve a human a second longer than necessary. When we finally recover our former strength, we will free ourselves from his control,” Zerza said. “Our new master is powerful, and the dryads called him an Ascendant. The books tell stories of Ascendants. Legendary beings capable of rending the skies and splitting the seas. It is unwise to fight the human directly.”

“I've seen the human fight,” Kral said with a snort. “Powerful, yes, but he could not rend the skies or split the seas as you say. He can stand against Urka, but barely, and only with his other minions.”

“Still, it would be stupid to fight him head-on. He might not be able to rend the skies as the stories tell, but he is powerful enough to rend thirty-two goblins by himself. Fighting him is not the answer.”

“We may only be thirty-two now, but soon, our numbers will reach into the thousands and not even he can kill all of us by himself,” Kral said with a snarl.

“That may be so, Kral, but it is not the right answer,” Zerza said carefully. She might have complete control of the tribe's reins for now, but Kral could easily take it from her forcefully. She would have to be careful in dealing with him. “Even if we emerge victorious, thousands of us will perish and we'll go back to our pitiful state. We're enslaving ourselves in the first place to restore our strength. If we have to sacrifice so many of us to regain our freedom, then all of this would be for nothing.”

Kral grumbled but did not contradict further. “Then what are we to do?”

“The human has relationships with the humans in Wildpost, that blasted village with the powerful warriors in the forest,” Zerza explained. “If we play this correctly, we may be able to pit them against each other. Our interaction with the masked human today tells me he is a trusting fool, which makes it easier to manipulate him. Wildpost has that powerful woman who could wreath her body in flames, and if she and the masked human fight, he will be weakened.” Zerza's eyes gleamed with sinister light. “That's when we'll strike.”

“You suggest that we assassinate him?” Kral asked in disgust. “He may be human, but he still spared our lives. I cannot do something so dishonorable to the first human that gave us a semblance of respect.”

Zerza was taken aback by Kral's reaction. She thought the hobgoblin warrior despised the human, but it turns out her presumptions about his feelings were wrong. “Then what do you suggest, then? That you challenge him to single combat like hobgoblins do when they want to take the title of Chieftain? Even you can see the stupidity in that.”

“I can challenge him when he's weakened…” Kral said weakly, but even he was doubting whether could defeat the masked man, even when weakened.

“Again, we have no choice,” Zerza said resolutely. “Either we assassinate him when he's weakened, or we remain his slaves forever. Your choice, warrior.”

Kral bit his lip in annoyance, but in the end, he nodded. They will build trust with the human and pit him against his own kind to weaken him.

And when the time came, the Stone Axe Tribe will be free once more.