Lord: Starting from a Goblin Nest

”Uh... never mind then.” Delaford stuck out his tongue and obediently copied the others, crouching low and covering his mouth and nose with his clothes.

Hiding behind a rock, Ron forcefully swung his arm, sending several tightly wrapped handkerchiefs flying into the Mad Frogman territory.

With a soft THUD, the handkerchiefs burst open on impact before the Mad Frogmen could even react. The powder within instantly billowed out, enveloping the small Mad Frogman encampment in moments.

The Mad Frogmen had no time to escape. The powder clung to their damp, mucus-covered skin, and its effects were rapidly absorbed as they breathed it in. Before Ron’s party had even reached the limit of how long they could hold their breath, not a single Mad Frogman was left standing outside.

Delaford immediately wanted to rush in and start finishing them off, but Ron quickly held him back. It was clear the goblin didn’t fully understand the finer points of this ”weapon.” The particles would remain suspended in the air for some time after dispersing; rushing in now would only mean getting a dose of it himself.

Ron hadn’t yet learned the Wind Creation Skill; otherwise, this attack would have been far more effective. Of course, judging by the results, it was already more than enough.

A gentle breeze blew past Ron and the others from behind, clearing away all the powder from the Mad Frogman territory.

”Go!” Ron ordered in a low voice. His companions immediately charged forward, unleashing a flurry of blows on the paralyzed, helpless Mad Frogmen to finish them off quickly.

It wasn’t that Ron couldn’t identify stronger natural poisons. Rather, a paralytic agent like this was simply more practical. A poison lethal on inhalation would be too easy to misuse—someone like Delaford might accidentally breathe in a tiny amount, leading to disastrous consequences. It just wasn’t worth the risk. A paralyzing powder was better; after all, they were all able-bodied and could easily move in to deliver the finishing blows, just as they were doing now.

All that remained now were the last of the Mad Frogmen inside the cave, and their king.

”I’ll go take a look!” Delaford declared, taking the lead. He dashed into the Mad Frogman cave in a flash. A moment later, Ron’s group heard the sounds of a fierce battle from within, followed by the thunderous, warning roar of a Mad Frogman.

Not that the Mad Frogmen outside would be getting up to help them anytime soon.

”That reckless fool!” Aive clicked her tongue, immediately hoisting her tower shield and charging in. Ron and the others followed close behind.

By the torchlight in the cave, they could see Delaford using his agility and small size to tie up three Mad Frogmen. These ones seemed weaker than those outside. Their builds were similar, but when Ron’s group engaged them, they felt they were all show and no substance. In terms of strength, agility, and overall physique, they were far inferior to the Hunters from the hunting party.

”Why is this happening?” Ron asked from the shadow of the tower shield, a Flaming Arrow piercing a Mad Frogman’s throat. ”Logically, shouldn’t the king’s guards be stronger than the ones outside?”

Although the cave was extensive and Mad Frogmen kept pouring out in response to the alarm, they posed almost no threat under the coordinated assault of Ron’s party.

”If I were the king, I wouldn’t keep the strong ones close,” Sera grunted, viciously hacking off a Mad Frogman’s leg. ”I heard they’re like beasts, right? The strongest one becomes the leader?”

”If you place the next-strongest ones right beside you with nothing to do, won’t they just challenge the leader every day? Wouldn’t the leader eventually become exhausted and weak from the constant battles?”

”It’s better to leave the old and weak in the cave. That way, it can dominate them at will to bolster its own prestige. Meanwhile, the Hunters outside are too busy just trying to survive, leaving them with no time or Energy to consider anything else.”

”You sound like a philosopher when you put it that way,” Victoria said in amazement, casting Blessing Magic on the party. ”I can’t believe you can wrap your head around such a complicated social issue.”

”That just means your so-called ’social issue’ isn’t that complicated! It’s no different from how beasts behave!” Sera roared with laughter and charged deeper into the cave. Just as Ron was about to shout a warning to the overeager barbarian, she came flying back out at an even faster speed.

Except this time, she was sent flying.

”HACK!” Sera spat out a mouthful of blood. ”Damn it, no wonder that blasted king doesn’t need guards—it’s the most powerful guard there is!”

Before Sera could finish, a terrifying croak, like thunder exploding right next to their ears, cut her off. As Ron reeled from the sound, his head spinning and ears ringing, a giant humanoid monster charged out from the depths of the cave.

Ron and the others instantly understood what Sera had meant.

This ”king” was easily twice the size of its subjects. Its dark green skin was rough and pocked, with murky slime oozing between a crisscrossing of new and old scars. Its muscles were coiled knots of unbridled fury. Not even the dead Mire Throat Monster had given Ron’s party such an overwhelming sense of pressure.

It carried a massive wooden club in one hand. Draped over its shoulders was a great cape woven from a collection of scavenged trinkets and broken junk. It rattled and clanked as the creature bounded forward, the sound like a marching army.

The king showed the intruders no mercy. After a cursory glance at the corpses of its kin on the ground, it trampled over the still-twitching bodies of the other Mad Frogmen and charged, howling, at the group!

BOOM!

Aive met the charge. Her relatively slender frame, braced behind the heavy tower shield, collided with the beast. The Mad Frogman King was stopped in its tracks, but Aive was sent staggering back, only managing to stop when Victoria and Sera combined their strength to brace her from behind.

”And here I thought this high ceiling was for my benefit!” Aive said with a wry smile, panting heavily. ”Turns out it was for it!”

”I’ve never even heard of a Mad Frogman this big!” Victoria exclaimed, shocked. ”Let alone seen one in person!”

”Magic Missile!”

But this was no time for astonishment. Ron immediately began chanting, unleashing a torrent of Magic Missiles that rained down on the Mad Frogman King as if they cost him nothing. A red light flashed in Victoria’s eyes as invisible threads materialized from the void, attempting to ensnare the creature and slow its movements. Delaford whipped out a shortbow, a single arrow transforming into a shower of thorns that poured down on the king. Meanwhile, Sera and Aive charged forward once more, putting their bodies on the line to halt the Mad Frogman’s advance!