"Miss Toreni, please bear witness for us."
"Alright."
Tree Elf Miss had been hiding nearby, and as she revealed herself, the Goblins immediately broke into a commotion.
Which monster living in the Jura Great Forest hadn't heard of the legend of the Tree Elf, the guardian of the forest?
Seeing her with their own eyes, how could mere panic describe it!
This feeling was like the mountain god you usually worship suddenly appearing.
"Please do not doubt, Goblins."
Toreni stepped forward and said, "The Ghost-Human Race bears no ill will; they sincerely wish to gain the loyalty of the Goblins."
"A powerful Demon has been born in the forest."
"He has decided to rule this forest and, at the same time, grant protection to the monsters living within it."
"No need to worry, please join them with confidence."
"I can guarantee you, on the honor of the Jura Great Forest's administrator, that there is no falsehood!"
The Goblins already intended to pledge allegiance to the strong, and with Toreni's guarantee, they immediately became excited.
"That's great!"
"Are we, are we also going to have a protector?"
"Finally, we don't have to worry about being eaten by terrifying monsters when we're in the wilderness!"
"Please come into the village, adults of the Ghost-Human Race!"
The Goblins of the Cardinal World, at least this branch of Goblins in the forest, are not as evil and cunning as described in other worlds.
Rather, they are very simple and even a bit too naive.
The Goblins of the Cardinal World are the failed creations of the Ancestor God.
They degenerated from materialized Elves into monsters, becoming Fairies and then further deteriorating.
Among them, the descendants of Earth-attribute Fairies became Dwarves, the descendants of Water-attribute Fairies became Fishmen, and the descendants of Wind-attribute Fairies evolved into the Long-Eared Race.
The Long-Eared Race here are actually the Elf race often seen in Western fantasy.
However, in the Cardinal World, Elves generally refer to spiritual beings, not the handsome men and beautiful women who live in forests and are skilled in archery and magic.
The Long-Eared Race is not much stronger than Dwarves or Fishmen; they are considered a relatively common demi-human race.
As for the Goblins, they are the product of the continuous degradation of Fire-attribute Fairies, making them the lowest-ranking Fairies.
It can only be said that the great explosion back then completely exhausted the Goblins' luck, leading to their current plight.
"Crude, poor, backward..."
Entering the Goblin village, Sakurako saw only primitiveness and dilapidation.
Among so many demi-human races, the Goblins were definitely the ones living the worst.
The village chief offered food to entertain the Ogres who had traveled a long way.
The food had no flavor, not even salt, and only the fruits were edible.
However, considering that everyone would become companions in the future, they politely ate some.
Bai Luo, who traveled between Pokémon and Konosuba worlds, brought back various supplies from there, greatly improving the lives of the Great Ogre Clan.
Before this, the quality of life for the Great Ogre Clan was not much better than that of the Goblins.
At most, there was just more abundant food.
Sakurako and the others did not disdain the Goblins' hospitality.
The good life was bestowed by Bai Luo and had nothing to do with their own efforts.
Once the Goblins also joined Bai Luo's command, they would also receive benefits; it was only a matter of time.
"This is a gift we are giving to the Goblins; please accept it."
Sakurako took out many supplies from her spatial storage and gave them to the Goblins.
This gesture truly made the Goblins feel overwhelmed with gratitude.
Delicious food, seasonings, and clothes and shoes suitable for Goblin physiques—these were all specially prepared by the Ogres during this time.
As for their origin, it was very simple.
Zhu Cai's Analyst could deconstruct matter and easily use existing materials to produce a large quantity of daily necessities.
"Pack your things and gather the clan members."
"Next, we will go to other villages and gather everyone."
There were 8,000 Goblins, with approximately 100 people per village.
With over 80 villages, it would take Sakurako and the others at least a full day to visit all of them.
Fortunately, the Goblin villages were not far apart.
For those with good relations, Goblins could even notify each other.
The Goblins acted quickly; how could they delay when they could gain a powerful being willing to protect them?
They immediately packed their belongings at the fastest speed, ready to depart.
Sakurako did not think much of the Goblins' messy village; although this area was the capital and center of Rimuru's Demon Country in the original work, it had no outstanding qualities in essence.
Everything was built by Rimuru from scratch.
The future center of the Demon Country would be the Ogre village.
Now was a time when population was scarce, and the addition of 8,000 Goblins would greatly accelerate the development from a village to a town.
"Alright, please wait a moment, adults of the Ogre; I will immediately have someone organize the supplies."
"Quick, don't keep the adults waiting!"
"We'll go prepare right away!"
"..."
The reactions of the Goblin villages were largely similar.
From initial vigilance and suspicion, to excitement upon receiving gifts, and joy at gaining favor.
Soon, led by various Goblin village chiefs, a large number of Goblins gathered on the grassland designated by Sakurako and the others.
"These should be all the Goblin villages that can be found nearby."
"Let's go."
At Sakurako's command, the vast Goblin procession, under the protection of the Ogres, set off towards the Great Ogre Village.
Due to the large number of people, what was originally a half-day journey increased to three days.
During this time, Sakurako and the other Ogres also had to protect the Goblins.
The numbers were too great, 8,000 people, nearly ten thousand.
Even though Goblins are small, 8,000 of them crammed together still formed a dense, dark mass.
To protect them well, the Ogres dared not relax their minds, constantly maintaining magic perception to guard against dangerous magic beasts that might rush out of the forest.
"Oh my, oh my!"
"How magnificent!"
"Magnificent ~ Magnificent ~"
In the forest, three figures hidden in the shadows had long noticed this scene.
They were members of the Moderate Clown Troupe: the Pleasure Clown Laplace, the Wrathful Clown Footman, and the Crying Clown Tia.
The three had actually arrived in this forest earlier.
However, the schemes in the Jura Great Forest were currently being led by Clayman, and they were only there to assist him.
"The insects have been subjugated."
"Now even the forest's administrator has started helping him."
"I feel like he's going to become an incredible fellow."
A Demon who appeared out of nowhere but grew to this extent in just one month.
Compared to Clayman's carelessness, Laplace instinctively felt a threat.