Chương 124: Chapter 116-Chosen Preparations

The class has broken up into discussion as Professor Stargazer watches from the corner. She said she would keep us safe, but past that, she's only going to observe. Basically, she told us to treat it like she wasn't even here. Naturally, the class has broken up into the groups we are usually in. We are creatures of habit after all. Viola with William and Ruby. William looks as stoic as ever as Viola and Ruby flirt with each other. Talon with Clint and Adiline.

Clint looks shocked as Talon gives him a friendly slap on the back. Then there's Garus with his new group of Julian and Clara. A combination I never thought I would see. Basically, we've all split up, which is not good. Hopper's bunny ears twitch.

"You look agitated," he says as I cross my arms.

"He is agitated," Penelope says as I scratch my horn.

"I'm not angry. I'm thinking," I say as I take note of the class, specifically Axel. He's with his group, but he's not really there. It's almost like his mind is somewhere else. Out of everyone, he's probably the worst off mentally. I'm not sure what happened in his ambush, but I can take a guess based on how his group looked when they came back. He got ahead of himself and didn't take into account his group's skill. Somebody probably got hurt, and he has been kicking himself for it.

"We can't clear a Goblin Colony with everyone broken up like this," Penelope says as she twirls a drill.

"Should we ask the Fourth Years for help?" Hopper asks as he gestures to the three sitting Fourth Years.

"Best we don't. They are only supposed to keep us from getting killed. What are you thinking, Charlatan?" Penelope asks.

"I'm thinking that I'm handsome. How about you?" I joke. Penelope rolls her eyes.

"About our situation."

"Oh, you mean that. Drastic measures need to be taken. Hopper, cover your ears," I say as I calmly walk up to the chalkboard.

"What?" Hopper asks while not covering his ears. A shrill noise rips through the room as I drag my nails across the chalkboard. The room looks at me in annoyance as I give them a devilish smile. I could've just asked for their attention, but this seemed fun.

"Good, I have your attention. Who knows the most about Goblin Colonies?" I ask as I look around the room.

"That would be me," Viola says with a hesitant hand raise.

"Good. What can you tell us?" I ask as I write out three group names on the board.

"They're locations where goblins have congregated. Usually, they've constructed a general perimeter along with housing and other such things. If this is an advanced one, which I think it is, they probably have a wooden wall along with watchtowers. They usually like to set up against mountain walls so that they can access or create a tunnel system in it," Viola explains.

"Why do you think it's an advanced one?" I ask as I shift to drawing out a rough outline of the Goblin Colony.

"Hobgoblins. The number of them in a Goblin Colony is directly proportional to how big and how advanced it is. A small colony usually has two, maybe three Hobgoblins. A medium-sized one can have up to six. An advanced one, eighth or more," she says.

"I see. Considering that all of us were attacked at the same time, that means that there are at least eight Hobgoblins. Which means this is the general layout we should expect for the Goblin Colony," I say as I point out the crudely drawn top-down view of the colony. The colony is a crudely drawn half circle resting against a cliff wall with a good twenty feet of clearance from the wooden walls to the nearest treeline.

The inside of the colony has a giant question mark, and the cliff wall has numerous little squiggles through it to represent the tunnel system. Based on what I read and what Viola explained, this should be somewhat accurate.

"Are you going to tell us what the groups are about?" Garus asks as he points at the chalkboard.

"I was hoping you would ask. Does anyone know why we got our ass handed to us?" I ask with a smile.

"A lack of skill?" Ruby asks.

"We didn't have enough guts?" Talon asks.

"..." William adds.

"Correct, William. They had the element of surprise. Sure, the Hobgoblins are more skilled than most of our enemies, but it's the fact that they caught us off guard that led to our defeat. Hopper, why did they catch us off guard?" I ask.

"They used a [Skill]. Most likely [Hide], [Disapper], or something similar to those [Skills]. It's the only way they could have gotten past my hearing," he says without an ounce of doubt.

"Now that we know what kind of enemy we're dealing with, we won't fall to the same trick twice, but we can use the same trick on them. The element of surprise. They won't be expecting us so soon. Which is why we need to strike while the iron's hot. Which brings us to the groups or squads. We have the AOE Squad. This consists of those who will be dealing with the horde of regular goblins using pure destructive force. Then there's the Head Hunter Squad.

Their one and only objective is to eliminate the Hobgoblins and stronger foes that they might have in there. Finally, we have the Cave Squad. We all know that a Colony of this size can't go unnoticed without help. There's a high likelihood that the forces of evil have a hand in this," I say as I point to the circle in the back of the caves. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"So, the Cave Squad is going to head into the caves and crush the big boss?" Talon asks with a hint of glee.

"Exactly."

"So, who exactly is on what squad?" Garus asks.

"That's what we're going to spend today talking about," I say as I get the conversation started. As I walk the halls of Iris Halls, I start to wonder if there's some magic in play here. I mean, this place is a maze. I took a wrong turn earlier and somehow found myself in the cooking club, much to Cliff's surprise. Thankfully, Cliff knew exactly where I wanted to go. So, I thought following his directions would lead me right to the Tinkering Club, but I would be wrong. With a sigh, I pick a random door and open it.

The smell of metal and grease assaults me along with the sight of gears. Well, this looks like the place. At the end of the messy room is a green-haired woman with a metal welding mask.

"Hello?" The green-haired woman continues to tinker away. Either she's ignoring me, or she didn't hear me. Hmm. Looking over at a pile of scrap, I gently give it a push. The tower of rust scrap clatters to the floor with a loud crash. The welding torch turns off, and the woman turns to me.

"Hi. Is this the tinkering club?" I ask fully knowing that it is. Raising the face mask, I recognize a familiar voice.

"Chosen One! Odd to see you here. What can I help you with?" Vivi asks with her oddly enthusiastic tone.

"Vivi, I didn't know you were a part of the Tinkering Club," I say as I close the door behind me.

"Don't tell anybody, but the Student Council doesn't keep me busy. After all, the Events Coordinator is only really needed when events are happening," she explains with a wink.

"Alright. So, can I ask you a favor as a member of the Tinkering Club? I'll owe you one," I ask with a hint of hopefulness.

"Who could pass up the Chosen One owing you a favor. What can I help you with?" she asks as she wipes some grease from her face.

"I got these daggers after fighting a Hobgoblin," I say as I hand her the three S-shaped daggers.

"Oh, Hobgoblin daggers! Now these are fun. See how the dagger is designed to curve in midair? That's actually not from the shape, but rather it's from the distribution of the liquid in the middle cylinder," Vivi says with enthusiasm as she carefully turns the dagger in her hand.

"Interesting. I was wondering if there was any way to modify them. Specifically, I would like to be able to fill up the middle cylinder via the blade. Kind of like a syringe," I say as I give a brief explanation.

"I don't exactly know why you would like to change that out, but yeah, I could do that. I can modify these three in a couple of days. Messing with Hobgoblin blades brings back memories!" she says with an infectious joy.

"Thanks for your help, Vivi. I really owe you," I say as I go to leave, but then I stop at the piles of scrap.

"Hey, could I ask you for one more favor?" Vivi cocks her head in curiosity.

"Of course! What's up!?"

"Do you mind if I borrow some of this scrap?" I ask as I point to the piles of rusted scrap.

"All yours! I was supposed to take them to get melted down, but you can take as much as you want," she says as she turns back to the daggers. Grabbing as much as I can carry, I walk back into the hall. I'll need to come back for more. Carefully making my way down the stairs, I eventually make it back to the Greenhouse. With my hands full, I have to maneuver with my feet to try to open the door. Come on! Just a little bit-"What are you doing?" Helia asks as she suddenly opens the door.

Losing my balance, I crash into the greenhouse.

"Just a little side project for the field."

"Hmm. For somebody who's going to face a Goblin Colony soon, you sure are acting pretty carefree," Helia says as her vine hair picks up some of the scrap.

"You seem to forget that I'm The Chosen One. I've faced down creatures of pure evil and slain beasts that could shake Penelope's drills straight," I [Lie].

"I do sometimes forget you're The Chosen One," she says as I carry the rest of the scrap to my little corner of the Greenhouse.

"Rude. Anyway, want to tell me what you think our odds are?" I ask as I neatly place the scrap in small piles of varying size.

"I'm not supposed to give you advice," she reminds me.

"Think of it less as advice and more as a hint," I say, fully realizing that they're the same thing. Helia sighs as she eats some cookies I made earlier.

"25%""Of the plan not working?" I ask optimistically. She slowly shakes her head as she takes a bite of her cookie.

"25%?! Really?! My plan is foolproof! I've even res- I mean I even asked for opinions from everyone else on how the plan should go," I say with a hint of disbelief.

"It's less your plan and more the players in it. That's also the most I'm willing to say. I'd rather Professor Stargazer didn't come pay me a visit later," Helia says from experience. The players? Is she talking about the synergies? No, I already accounted for that. Maybe the overall skill of those involved? They're in the Advanced Class! They're the best I have available. Then what? The memory of Axel pops into my mind. Oh. I see. She doesn't think they have the capability to overcome their fears.

"You're wrong. They're made of tougher stuff," I say with a soft tone.

"Maybe, but I guess we'll see," Helia says as she lazily turns a page in her book.

"I guess we will," I say with a devilish smile.