Chapter 9: Pile the Goblin Slayer

[Windy castle, lord's bedroom]

Violet: Good morning, my lord. Huh, why Lady Isabelle is sleeping here.

Sola:.....and naked.

Iris: It's our tradition that men and women....blah...blah...blah...

Isabelle covers herself with a blanket and cries.

Peony: It seems you have been enjoying your property all night long. Please excuse me. I have some work to do.

Peony walks away.

Elena: My lord, did you...? Well, not my business, but I guess I'd better continue serving Lady Isabelle.

Elena walks away.

Lord: Wait... no... I don't really know what happened.

Isabelle is still crying.

Lord: Stop crying now! and talk!

Isabelle: Ok...ok.. last night I just wanted to try sleeping on this bed, and fell asleep here. Then it's rather hot in here. So, I took off my clothes. That's all.

Lord: And your tears?

Isabelle: Oh, this? Some pollens got into my eyes.

Lord: Pollen, yeah, pollen.... Now two girls are very angry at me, oracle.

Isabelle: Have fun getting them back, Lord of yggdrasil. [giggle]

Iris: This is troll level 10.......mumble...mumble...

[In front of Windy castle]

Iris: Peony has gone back, my lord.

Ruby: She is angry at you again.

Lord: It's OK. I get used to it.

Sola: Elena isn't here, my lord. Should we wait for her or send someone to talk with her?

Lord: It's OK. She has changed her mind. Don't try to force her.

Iris: Too bad right? She has such a calm and gentle feminine personality.

Wevil: My new concubine. T_T

Lord: Almost forgot the math girl. What is her name again?

Iris: Snowwhite, my lord. She said she can walk back to the balcony at your castle alone as she is quite capable of handling herself.

Sola: OK. Let go back then. Come here, giant trent.

Cotton: Goodbye everyone.

[A little while along the path]

Lord: I saw Peony talking to blue birds earlier.

Sola: They are all yggdrasil's creation. The blue ones can't talk back but they can receive command. We can command them too, not just Peony. But they seems to stick around Peony, due to her innate control talent.

Lord: It's a very effective form of communication. I saw loads of them around the castle. Should we have some of them follow us everywhere, so we can send messages to other maidens easier.

Sola: Good idea. I will arrange that.

Wevil: Eh...too bad. We're going home already?

Lord: Is there any other place around here we can visit.

Sola: There is a small human town to the east, 2 hours of giant trent's walk.

Wevil: Let go! The lord commands it.

Lord: I haven't yet, but let go.

Iris: Let me stuck this noisy doll somewhere, as we are going to a human area. Hey! stay still, doll.

Sola: We can still use giant trent at least the first half of the path.

Iris: Giant trent. Always go into tree mode immediately if you see any human, all right? Let's go.

[Somewhere along the path]

Ruby: Look! Someone is fighting goblins, I mean engineer goblins...uh....I don't know what kind exactly.

Sola: You can distinguish them by their ears, nose and their clot....

Lord: Not the time, Sola. Shouldn't we help them?

Sola: Help who? The goblins or the humans? Or should we try to stop the fight?

Lord: Hmm....

Iris: Too late, my lord. The fight has ended.

Violet: Hello, you guys are OK? These goblins tried to rob you?

Man: We are OK. My name is Pile, the leader of this small group.

Violet: My name is Violet. I'm glad you are all OK.

Pile: I can't believe my eyes. I'm seeing a beautiful girl in the wood after fighting goblins. You are not some sort of fairy, are you?

Violet: Please don't say that. I'm just a normal girl.

Pile: And you smell so nice too. It's like I'm meeting an angel.

Violet is blushing.

Iris: Eh..eh? Is that OK, my lord? One of your maidens seems to be falling in love.

Ruby: Each and every maidens shall have their own free will.

Lord: Huh? Oh yes, exactly, Ruby.

Sola: You don't care much because you still have a lot of us left. What if she is your last maiden? Would you do nothing at all?

Lord: Hard question, Sola. Some men could have gone punch him in the face, right? If that's what you mean.

Ruby: Let her go, my lord. My free will will always be with you [giggle]

Pile: We are about to go back to the town after killing these goblins. Let us accompany you girls. The path is too dangerous for a group of girls to travel alone, and your man doesn't seem to know how to fight.

Lord thinks: [Yeah...yeah, but only the last part is correct. I doubt even the entire Midland's army can harm these girls]

Iris: Sure thing. This man is just our servant. Please ignore him. [This should be extremely fun]

Lord thinks: [She is at it again]

Iris, whispering: Everyone stops calling him lord for a while. This is for his own protection.

Lord thinks: [Nah, you just want to have some fun]

Pile: Hey, guys. Cut their heads, put them into the bags and let go.

[A while later]

Ruby: I'm hungry.

Pile: Let sit under that tree and enjoy our lunch.

Iris: I have to ask. Does your name come from pinewood or something?

Pile: No, pile, as in a pile of cow dungs.

Iris thinks: [Is that a joke? Should I laugh?]

Pile: Wow. Where did you girls find a blueberry that big?

Sola: In a forest somewhere, huh..huh.

Pile: Check my trusty crossbow. The bolt is very accurate. Look at that tree. I will shoot it.

Iris catches the bolt in midair.

Sola: Iris, stop trolling him.

Pile: What happened. Where is the bolt?

Sola: Forget about it, Pile. Let just say some evil banshee took it.

Iris: Grrr....

Violet: Why did you take all these goblins heads?

Pile: We are beast hunters, my lady. We hunt goblins, sometimes orcs, ogres or trolls, and exchange their head for money from town leaders. It is a way for a town to control the number of dangerous beasts in the area.

Violet: Wow. So cool, but eh? Does that mean you have to search and kill goblins that haven't done anything to you.

Pile: I know what you're implying, but I can't just walk and ask a goblin whether it's a good guy, right? Or do you want us to disguise ourselves as a merchant caravan? If we do that, instead of a chance to attack them first, they might preemptively shoot their arrows at us.

Violet: It seems very difficult to save a goblin's life.

Sola: Yes, Violet. That's why human, and us too, stereotype. Sometimes, the nicest, most beautiful path of action is impossible to do without a risk of losing our life or something valuable to us. We don't have time or resources to check whether a goblin is bad or want to harm us. If 10 goblins someone has seen in the past were either killing or robbing, then I won't blame them if they decide to kill the 11th goblins they meet.

Iris: And that's why engineer goblins are trying so hard to separate themselves from the forest goblins.

Sola: Yes, they too, don't want to get killed by someone stereotyping them as 'goblin'. They dress differently, act differently, and telling everyone that they are another kind of goblins, which is true, more or less. I don't think anyone is right or wrong in this. We all just want to continue to live in this cruel world.

Iris: Or they could try to tell the world to stop stereotyping, but that will never work, as long as forest goblins are robbing and killing like eating some snack after breakfast.

Pile: Wow. I'm impressed by your conversation. This is truly enlightening.

Iris: Pile, you are good at sword fighting, yes? Do you want to be a personal teacher for our lord in our castle? He needs to improve his fighting skill, and we all are not familiar with human's sword. We can pay 1 gold coin per day.

Pile. One gold coin per day? And a chance to stay near you cuties. I'm in.

Iris: Walk this way for a day. If you see a talking tree, tell them Peony or Sola told you to come here to work as the lord's sword teacher.

Sola, whispering: Is that OK without consulting our lord first?

Iris, whispering: What? You don't want something fun? Our lord might love us more if there is some kind of competition.

Sola: .....

Violet: Welcome, Pile. We will be waiting for you.

Iris: Eh..eh..Violet. What kind of wait huh...He will surely come after you said that.

Pile: But there is no castle in the direction you are pointing. Hey, I know it. You girls are yggdrasil maidens in the rumor, and this man is probably your lord. Please forgive my manners, my lord.

Iris: Now he know our secret, but isn't that good? That mean he is quite clever and could be a good teacher.

Lord: Enough of small talk. Let go people.

[A few hours later]

Lord: Didn't you say 2 hours, Sola?

Sola: 2 hours of giant trent's walk, my lord. This is...

Lord: Right....Let increase the coverage of our wagon network then. Top priority.

Sola: [giggle] Exercise is good for your heart you know.

Lord: Sola, my heart is failing.

Ruby: Drink this red potion, my lord, it might help.

Lord: Don't you have stamina potion or something.

Iris: Got to ask those magicians when we get back.

Ruby: Look! There is a house over there, near a pond with crystal clear water.

Pile: Let us part way here. I'd like to continue the journey with you girls. But we have to sell the goblin's heads and our guys have their family waiting at home.

Violet: Let meet at our castle then.

Iris: Hey....hey....Violet, whose castle huh?

Pile walks away.

Sola: Anyone here? Could we rest here a while?

Lord: Are you sure we should rest near a villager's house? We can rest under a big tree somewhere.

Sola: The is a pond in its backyard. Let our plants enjoy the water.

A small girl in strange clothing is walking towards them.

Parma: Hi, you girls are so pretty. Please enjoy your stay. My name is Parma, by the way.

Lord: Thank you. I'm sorry we will trouble you for a while.

Ruby: Let go into the pond.

Violet: Me go too.

[Ruby talking with Violet in the pond]

Ruby: Hmm...you seem a lot more beautiful when you are in love.

Violet: What are you talking about?

Ruby: Even stupid me know it, Violet. [giggle] What about our lord?

Violet: No...no. My heart is still with our lord. He is just....

Ruby: I'm kidding, Violet. Let your heart lead you. Don't worry about a thing.

Ruby: Plus, there would be less competition for my lord [giggle]

Violet and Ruby are giggling.

[Near the pond]

Lord: Why are you closing your eyes all the time? Are you blind?

Parma: Not really, I can see everything with my magic. I am a low-level magician. All magic I can do is magic shot. [giggle]

Sola: Live is good around here, right? Peaceful pond in the middle of the forest.

Parma: No, not at all. A lot of goblins, even orcs, roam around the area. Yesterday, an entire family just got killed.

Iris: Why doesn't the lord of this town do something?

Parma: This is a small town with little resources. The more goblins rampage, the more people leave, the lesser resources to control goblin, resulting in the more goblin rampage.... It's a downward spiral.

Iris: Too bad. Midland should send their army to deal with these creatures. This town is within their territory after all.

Parma: The town has requested more troop, but insignificant towns like this often get ignored.

Sola: Desperate situation, but let go before it's dark.

Parma: You guys are going to the town? I'm going there too.

Sola: Let's go. I'm glad you join us.

[Town square]

Lord: This town is so small compared to Morroc.

Iris: Where are you going, Parma.

Parma: My home is over there. The house near the pond is not mine.

Lord: Hey..hey..isn't your house a bit too big. Eyes always closed…northeastern town...and that's why I think I heard her name somewhere before. I just realized that....

Sola: What is it, my lord.

[Parma's residence]

Parma: Welcome. You can stay here as long as you want.

Iris: Nicest house in town. Your father a rich radish merchant or something?

Lord: She is the lord of this town, and also an oracle.

Sola: I got it. Our well-timed meeting. All those talks about goblins and orcs. Do you want our help?

Iris: I can't follow these guys sometimes....mumble...mumble...

Parma: I don't have anything to trade, except my gratitude. Could you please at least send a maiden? We both know that one maiden is more powerful than a small army.

Sola: I will ask them. I probably do this myself.

Violet: But you have to kill those creatures indiscriminately, right?

Iris: Violet, you still want to re-educate them? [giggle]

Violet: If there is a chance and is possible, I might try. But do whatever you see fit. I'm OK either way.

Sola: I will think what is the best course of action.

Parma: After inheriting this town from my father, I don't know what to do. My only gift is my prophecy.

Sola: Take care Parma. We will at least send some trents to patrol the area.

[In the town square]

Ruby: Nothing to eat, nothing to see. What a depressing town.

Iris: Don't say that, Ruby. We met 2 new friends along the way.

Ruby: You are right, and Violet seems so happy. [giggle]

Lord: Let's walk back to our giant trent then. They don't even have a wagon service here.

Parma, walking in: I can't thank you enough. At least let me walk with you on the way out.

Lord: Oh, I forgot. Could you give a general advice about my life? Anything important I should know?

Parma: My prophecy could change your future itself, and makes it untrue. You will have a very long life, but everything you have may not last long. Enjoy today as it is your last.

Lord: Thank you, Parma.

Lord thinks: [Why do these oracles always give me an ominous prophecy? But at least this one gives a bit more information]

Sola: Let's go. It's a long walk, and it's late afternoon now.

[A few hours later]

Iris, whispering: Sola, the oracle is still walking with us. Don't you think it's strange?

Sola, whispering: Yes, it's strange. It's almost 3 hours now. How long will she be walking with us?

Iris, whispering: Doesn't she have any power at all like she said?

Sola, whispering: I don't sense anything. She is above human average, yes, but still way weaker than Astille.

Iris, whispering: But she can still kill our lord in one shot, right?

Sola, whispering: I'm sure I can protect him fast enough. I will walk between him and her, just to be safe.

Iris, whispering: Can she lead us to an ambush or something?

Sola, whispering: I don't see any motive, and I can't imagine how any ambush can harm us. Half of our entire fighting force is here.

Iris, whispering: Well, I'm doing something about this.

Iris: Hi, Parma. Are you tired? Do you want to walk with us to our castle?

Parma: No, just for a little while. There are a lot of goblins in this area. I want to go with you as far as I can. As an oracle, I can warn you if they attack.

Iris, whispering: Hmm...she is smooth. Quite a diplomat. Goblin attack...huh?

Parma: Oh, are you girls hungry. Let rest here a bit. I brought some special food.

Iris, whispering: Special food huh? What should we do, Sola?

Sola, whispering: Human poisons are not strong enough to harm us. I have tried a lot. Also, I don't see how she can get away from this place alive if she poisons our lord, but to be safe, don't let our lord eat her food.

Ruby: Foooood. Let rest here and try this exotic food, everyone.

Lord: OK, let rest here.

Lord, whispering: I won't eat her food, if that's what you girls are worrying about. I feel something is not right, too.

Ruby: Wow. The food is soooo delicious. I never eat this kind of food before.

Iris: I'm not hungry. Enjoy yourself, Ruby.

Sola, whispering: Ruby is much tougher than she looks. Don't worry, my lord.

Violet: I saw you girls whispering since a few minutes ago? What was it about? Hmm...

Iris: The sun has set now. Parma, you still want to walk with us? What about your journey back?

Parma: This forest is my home. I know the movement of all dangerous creature because I am an oracle. I also have my [Magic shot], you know.

Ruby: Thank you for walking with us, Parma. You want us to be as safe as possible, right?

Parma: That's the least I could do. About time, let's go.

Lord thinks: [Huh? About what time? I have a really bad feeling about this.]

[A while later]

Ruby: What's that up ahead?

Violet: Ruby has the best eyesight among us, my lord.

Ruby: Oh, nothing. It’s just a blue sunflower.

Violet: Isn’t that what you sent Purple to find, Sola.

Sola: What?

Violet: Blue sunflower.

Sola: Oh, yes…yes….very important flower.

Parma: Good bye, everyone. I don’t have the mood to do anything anymore.

Parma walks back to her town.

It seems so weird, but everyone reaches the castle safely.

[Several years later]

On a peaceful windswept meadow, everyone is having a picnic.

Ruby: Our life is so good, right? My lord.

Lord: Yes, I’m so happy. It’s a little uneventful, but I don’t mind.

Iris: I’m happy too, but did you remember that day with Parma long time ago. I still have a very weird feeling that something must have happened. And you know what? Since that day, it’s like nothing ever happen to us anymore.

Ruby: She is our good luck charm, sis.

Iris: Guess so.

Sola: No, this is an alternate timeline.

Iris: Huh? What do you mean?

Sola: It means there is another set of every one of us living another life in another dimension, another place, another universe, another world……somewhere else, whatever you want to call it.

Iris: Too bad to be them, right? Why would anyone want such a difficult life?

Sola: Yes, but if anyone want to know what story happens in the alternate timeline. You can go to Amazon, Lulu or the like, and search for Yggdrasil Story: In an old castle, and buy it. The full book 1 has 20 chapters in it.

Sola: Or like the facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Yggdrasil-Story-112704520078652/?modal=admin_todo_tour

Iris: What are you talking about and whom are you talking to? Sola.

Sola: Never mind. Enjoy your peaceful life with me forever, Iris, ruby, everyone... Want my sunflower seed?