Lord: Starting from a Goblin Nest

”Alright, you’re the Lord. You call the shots.”

The gold dragon sighed. He hadn’t planned on letting this Ghost Witch live, but as Ron said, creatures came and went in this land. If this one died, another would just appear. Ron and his people certainly didn’t have the manpower or resources to watch over a foul, rotting swamp.

If he still didn’t intend to investigate personally and wanted to rely on Ron’s group, then it was best not to saddle him with too many trivial matters.

”Benefactor, I took off the Elf’s mask. His master is completely dead. But...” Silvia trailed off. ”It would be best if you came to see for yourself.”

Ron followed Silvia over to ”Ming Datiss,” but what met his eyes wasn’t a blond-haired, blue-eyed Elf, but... red skin?

”Uh, hi?” A familiar Tiffling sat on the ground, greeting Ron awkwardly. ”Sorry. I’m sorry we had to meet again like this. And... thank you for saving me.”

”Wait, I don’t understand.” Ron was a bit stunned. ”Where’s Ming Datiss? Why are you here?”

”Ming Datiss is holding down the fort in Carolina. As you know, their situation isn’t great because of you,” Quest said, shaking his dizzy head. ”You must have met Bakoyannis and her bandits. I was just like them—a diversion to draw your attention.”

”But it looks like their plan failed, right? You weren’t the ones commanding the Goblin Legion at all.”

”Klade, the earth goblin,” Ron said. ”Then shouldn’t you have been near our trading post and village? This place is a bit too far, isn’t it?”

”I was at first, but when I saw that Black Dragon enter the fray with the Kobolds, I knew Bakoyannis and her group were doomed to fail.” Quest glanced at the gold dragon behind Ron. ”Oh, and you got a... full-grown one? That’s incredible...”

”How did you manage that?”

”He’s a friend of a friend, at best,” Ron said with a wave of his hand. ”Let’s not talk about that. Tell me about yourself. How did you end up being controlled by the Ghost Witch?”

”After I saw they wouldn’t amount to much, I took on Ming Datiss’s appearance and wandered around here to see if I could find anything. It was to prevent what happened last time, when the Kobolds couldn’t stop Ming Datiss from stealing a Gemstone.”

”Then, while passing through a swamp, I discovered Sally. She was disguised as an old woman, but I saw through to her true form at a glance.”

”Her ’aunt’ had sunk her in the swamp, supposedly because her sister ratted her out for planning to resist.” Quest glanced at the three Ghost Witches on the ground. ”I wasn’t going to get involved, but she had an ace up her sleeve. She was holding a material for Casting under her tongue—that’s how I was controlled.”

”I woke up at one point and tried to break free, but I failed and had this mask put on me.”

Quest scratched his head, a little embarrassed. ”It’s a bit shameful for a Dark Scout to end up like this, haha.”

”The bizarre Magic of a Ghost Witch is impossible to guard against,” Silvia said, leaning on her Walking Stick as she stood before the Tiffling. ”But that aside, don’t you have a few too many suspicious things about you?”

”For instance?”

”For instance, how did you take on Ming Datiss’s appearance without the Ghost Witch noticing?” A hint of hostility was hidden in Silvia’s red eyes. ”And for another, how is it that after she controlled you, the information she got was about Ming Datiss?”

”Don’t you have your own name? Why did she get ’Ming Datiss’ instead of ’Quest’?”

”You’re getting more and more suspicious!”

”Let it go, Silvia.” Just as Silvia and Quest were facing off, Ron spoke up, breaking the stalemate. ”Everyone has a few little secrets. If he wants to keep his, let him.”

”Maybe he’ll tell us on his own eventually?”

’What Ron was thinking about was the Mind Reading Ability Quest had when they first met. A Tiffling shouldn’t have that kind of skill, nor should he have abilities like shapeshifting.’

’How did he learn it? Was he born with it? Or did he train to acquire it?’

”When the time is right, I will explain everything,” Quest said, giving Ron a grateful look. ”Please rest assured, Miss Sylvia. My actions are not without reason, nor do I bear you any ill will. I truly have my own difficulties.”

”If you really can’t accept it, just think of it as an occupational hazard for a Dark Scout.”

”But no matter how well I imitate him, I still can’t use a rapier,” Quest said, getting to his feet and picking up the sword from the ground. ”My apologies. Not only was I no help this time, but I’m now in your debt. I need to get back and ’report’ as soon as possible.”

”Speaking of which, if you fail like this every time, won’t Ming Datiss get suspicious?” Ron asked curiously. ”Good abilities, but questionable loyalty?”

”Quite the opposite,” Quest said with a smile. ”He thinks my loyalty is sufficient, but my abilities are questionable—that’s why he dispatched me to work with Bakoyannis’s group.”

”Given the Hailan Empire’s disgusting stance, anyone willing to stick with him must be devotedly loyal, right?”

The Tiffling disappeared into the shadows of the trees in a few leaps, but he returned a moment later.

”I feel like I should bring back some information this time,” Quest said with a small smile. ”Do you have any special ’insider news’ worth reporting to my Elf Nobility slave master?”

”Bakoyannis and her bandit trading post have been destroyed. How about that?” Ron’s eyes darted, and another idea struck him. ”Oh, right, and here’s another bombshell. The residents of Green Swamp Town threatened a Green Dragon around the time the town was destroyed, and its bones are still under an Old Banyan Tree—that’s where its Dragon’s Nest was.”

”Isn’t that... a bit too much of a bombshell?” Quest hesitated. ”I’m grateful you’re willing to tell me, but won’t this affect you?”

”It’s just a skeleton, its spiritual essence almost completely dissipated. Everything else has been cleared out,” the gold dragon interjected. ”You can also go ahead and tell him there might be news of his mother’s lineage there.”

”How do you know that?” Silvia was taken aback. ”The one who went with us into the Green Dragon’s Nest was the Aiksu Ruben Dragon, wasn’t it?”

”He went with you, that’s correct. But what does that have to do with it?” The gold dragon’s gaze fell on the Vampire Descendant’s Walking Stick. ”Doesn’t this say ’Von Richthofen’ on it? I didn’t go with you, but I’m not blind.”