With the elves and goblins we rode the wolves to the second goblin village. The village now was much quieter than when we came here six months ago. Never many less goblins living in this village now after the death of the soldiers. Regardless, it was still crowded as compared to the first goblin village with which we engaged in trade partnership.

When the goblins saw us approaching the village, they gathered at the village entrance. They did not have as much a gate to enter the village, but just an empty area designated to function as an entrance with some short fences in front of the residential space. It was here that six months ago we left our wolves and went into the village with the purpose of trading. We were ambushed by the sly goblins, yet now we own everything they have. I came to collect 40% of all produced they had. But of course, it is within my plans that if I do not deem 40% enough, I would appropriately increase the percentage of tax collection.

The goblins lined up in front of the entrance. One adult male goblin from among them took a step. I deduced that this would be the new chief of this goblin village from the reaction of the others and the ceremonial process of welcoming. His skin had tones of copper green which were sparkling with the sun beams hitting on his bald scalp. He was ugly and short, yet he looked strong like a warrior.

“We had the 40% of our produce readied for this half year’s tax.” The goblin exclaimed as some other goblins arrived at the entrance, pulling carts loaded with food, plants, and barrels.

“What are inside the barrels?” I wanted to clarify.

“Barley, wheat, and lentils.” The goblin answered.

“Are there only 10 carts?”

“Yes, 25 carts is all we produced this half year.”

“Where are the animals?”

The goblins were suddenly hit with a shock they did not know how to navigate around. The goblin I assumed to be the new chief once again acted as their spokesperson.

“Were we not asked to give 40% of our produce? We have limited number of livestock – if we give them at this time, I am afraid we will not be able to reproduce enough for the upcoming season.” The goblin was using a servile tone to speak to me. What he said made sense – if I want this village to be sustainable and produce good amounts of food, I should probably not increase the produce tax any further.

“Then give me a quarter of the newborn livestock, and half of the fish you caught.” I declared with a strict tone. After all, the village belonged to me, and I had no intention to show mercy to a faction of hypocrites.

To be quite honest, I was even thinking about bringing our own people here to assimilate the villagers and get rid of any resistance. Nonetheless, this would not be smart unless I have another 5000 people residing in Harren first. There are more things to do inside and around the cave than out here in this location. It would be a waste of human resources to send people here just to run things. I will let this village before the time being while also collecting tax, and after enough time passes, I will start a more comprehensive assimilation project. If only this goblin village had nothing trust I could have thought about getting some of these goblins into our school system.

“Alright,” The goblin agreed reluctantly though he showed no second thoughts “Bring the fish and livestock.” He ordered to the goblins who brought the carts.

Soon enough, there were cattle, goats, and sheep in front of us along with carts full of dried fish. There was not much diversity in terms of the dried fish, but the quantity was good. Thinking that it might be possible to reproduce the fish in the water bodies created by the undines, I ordered to get some live fish inside barrels full of water for transportation into the ponds around the cave. I will tell undines to create a big lake in 30 minutes walking distance to the cave entrance after they are done with ponds. That should provide enough space for multiple fish species to cohabitate and reproduce.

“We will be back after six months. I'm expecting better from you.”

The entire crowd made of goblins was in complete silence. I did not use my interdimensional storage for the purpose of transportation of goods this time. Instead, I ordered the many men I brought with me to pull the cards with their wolves. Wolves were not innate carriers, but they were strong enough to pull couple carts when they huddled up.

The silhouette of the village got smaller and smaller until it faded away completely into the forest as we kept marching towards our destination, Harren. The trees were blocking the sight of the village and of everything else inside the forest, forcing us to not lose our path. Of course, there were many men who wandered this forest many times with us now. Yet it was only once that we came to this goblin village. We have not built a path yet to follow and we have not familiarized ourselves with the surroundings in this area. Fastest and safest way back to Harren for us then was following a straight line, just like how we followed a straight line to come to the Goblin village in the first place.

“Stop!” I enhanced my shout with magic for everyone to hear my command.

“Leave the carts and ready your weapons!” I gave the second order in a whim. Somethings were getting closer, yet I did not know how many of them were.

From in between the trees a flood of goblins started rushing on to our group. By no means they looked friendly, but some of them looked familiar.

As they kept running towards us, closing the distance in between, they kept shouting and screaming. The clangs of their weapons and armor echoed the air into a battle song.

“Take your defensive positions! Do not let them break your formation!”

I brought soldiers who were training in Harren and my decision ultimately proved essential. Still, with the number of goblins running towards us, this by no means will be a short fight.