Chương 18: Chapter 17

Sobelle kept up with the Gods' tasks despite the active presence of the Goblins. If there was something she feared in this world, then it is if she were to find out that the Gods were disappointed in her. The thought of that simply did not sit right with her and she feared what the Gods would bring upon her if she were to ever fail them. Her father let her do it as well, she didn't know why, but her old man trusted her enough to come back alive even if she were to encounter goblins. And the guards were...

Not supportive of her, the opposite actually happened. Sobelle felt that they'd want her to get used as a sow by the goblins if it meant they no longer saw her. Reputation-wise, Sobelle knew that everyone's opinions of her had somehow plummeted, and it was even worse compared to before. Back then, Efree—and possibly even her other siblings—constantly sullied Sobelle's name whenever she wasn't around. She was a busy person so it happened frequently. Now, it felt like everyone did it, not just her siblings. Why?

She wasn't quite sure. Fortunately, she did have some allies in the village, and this was something Sobelle was grateful for. Not only was her father strong enough to make everyone else stay away, she had made a friend with Thetras and the village chief viewed her as someone useful. So much so that he had some degree of respect for her. Her allies may be small in number, but what they brought to the table was a lot compared to everyone else. She was protected. Though Sobelle did not know just for how long.

People stared at her with aggression that they could barely hide the moment she passed the gates. She had just finished her morning routine and so she was sweaty, this got her a warning from the village chief.

"Sobelle, you shouldn't go to the forest when you're sweating this much. It might attract the goblins to your location if you do." The man seemed wise when it came to dealing with the greenskins so Sobelle took his warning to heart.

"They have a strong sense of smell, especially for the scent of women. If you've ever leaked somewhere in that forest, then they know you're there."

'Of course I have. I can't exactly just hold my bladder.'

"Thank you for the warning." Sobelle gave the man a respectful bow. She'd still leave the gates whenever she could, however.

"I'll keep it in mind."

"Good. And you should, it's a waste for our village to lose someone as smart as you." The village chief went back to ordering the women to weave long squares using plant fiber. Sobelle did not know what he'd plan to do with them and she wasn't interested so she just left. Back at home, she picked up the knife her father told her to bring whenever she went past the tree line and then went back out. The men who guarded the gate complained as they opened it for her.

"How many times do we have to do this for you every day?" One man scoffed. He didn't even belong to the village, he was part of the merchant group.

"You come here, tell us to open the gates, and then leave. Do you think we're some convenient slaves you can just order around?"

"I never said that." Where did he get that from? Did opening a gate for her felt so much like a burden that he felt the need to compare it to slavery? He was not free labor with no rights as far as Sobelle was aware. Though she wished he was.

"You might as well have!" The other guard scowled. He kicked the gate in anger. It shook hard enough to attract attention, "you keep going out there, telling us to open the gates! What if we don't want to?!" This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Then don't." Sobelle replied knowing that someone was coming over. Did they think they were the only ones who felt frustrated? She was too. This treatment used to only be limited around her family, and now it extended to the entire village.

"I didn't ask you to keep doing it for me, now did I? This is your job."

"Sobelle is right." The chief luckily came to her aid. He pointed at the two men, "and you two, go outside. What are you standing watch over when you're here? The whole village? I need eyes meant to catch goblins that scouted us. And you can't see them here." She felt smug when the guards' face turned sour and the satisfaction that she felt at seeing them be obedient couldn't be described. Why couldn't this happen more often?

If she could scream at people the same way the chief did—which was to say, with no consequences—then she'd feel so much better about herself every day!

"Keep hiding behind the chief you bitch." She caught one of them muttering this on her way out.

"One day you'll get what you deserve." Sobelle ignored him entirely. All while she made sure she'd remember that her enemies grew restless. On one end, she had goblins and on the other, her very own people wanted her dead. Where did she belong then? Outside? It was like the whole world was out to get her. She put all of that behind her and checked her traps, she still got herself some catches despite the forest being eaten away by the invasive greenskins.

It meant that they weren't so numerous that the local animals were wiped clean. Yet. Not numerous yet. She cooked, she ate, and she stood up to re-arm her traps. Silence. This was what her ears picked up when she made her way back inside the forest, and it wasn't the type that could be found at night time either. The birds ceased their songs and not even insects dared make noise, the croaking of a frog echoed for a second before it was snuffed out. Usually they'd do it several times in a row.

She didn't need to be a genius to know that something was amiss. Sobelle slowly backed away, she dropped her traps and looked around her warily. Goblins rarely moved alone, and if they were truly here, then that meant she needed to fight a small group of them. She had no armor, no knowledge of how to fight them, and the area around her was to their benefit while it actively hindered her at the same time. She was at a massive disadvantage right now, and she was far too deep to start running.

If that was even possible given how fast greenskins were. To survive this, she needed to fight. But how would one fight goblins? They were agile and often relied on groups, they also targeted the arms and legs of their targets— Sobelle grunted when a rock hit her head. This too was how they fought. They stayed far away from their prey and opted to throw things that weakened them, then they moved in once their prey turned helpless. This was how goblins hunted, Sobelle knew this much thanks to the village chief.

But knowing was completely different from experiencing and right now, she had no clue what to do. She wanted the gods to help her but it seemed that they wouldn't provide her with advice this time around. Another rock hit her head and Sobelle gritted her teeth. She constantly looked around her, intent on dodging more of the things that these things will be throwing her way. Slowly, her hearing sharpened and her eyes blurred.

The corner of her vision turned foggy and the only thing she focused on was what was directly in front of her. The air around her felt cold, did the sensitivity of her skin increase as well? Her hairs stood up and her ears picked up the sound of whistling. Her eyes saw nothing and the sound was far too distant to be directly in front of her ears so that meant it came from behind her. Sobelle moved her head left just in time for a rock to whoosh past her temple.

Another goblin followed through with a smaller rock but Sobelle dodged that too. Then another came and another followed. After the fifth throw—and she did count—the goblins started complaining. Sounds of frustration came from beyond the undergrowth and there was a lot.

'I really am dealing with Goblins. Five, to be exact.' The places she laid traps in would attract greenskins, she had expected this already. But that wasn't enough was it? She should be doing more and preparing things, after all, she knew they would come. She did. So why didn't she prepare? She should be better than this and make better decisions! [+1 Wisdom] Sobelle couldn't even feel glad from seeing the extra point.

She had far bigger problems to deal with and an extra number in her [Wisdom] stat would not help with that. If it was [Strength], then maybe she'd stand a chance.