Chapter 376: Self-Destruction and Retreat
"Retreat!"
After a brief hesitation, Ironfang gave the order to withdraw.
The war had only just begun, and it needed to preserve the army's combat strength.
Even if they forced an attack and won in the end, the losses would be severe.
The goblins had hidden a force of ten thousand boar cavalry in the eastern forest, which suggested that the goblin tribe's numbers were even greater.
Ironfang was willing to sacrifice two thousand to kill a thousand enemies, but exceeding that limit was not worth it.
Standing atop his savage bull beast, Ironfang waved his staff. His eyes glowed with a green hue.
Not far away, the Fire Rat Giant, which had been battling Gobu Tiger, suddenly halted. It abandoned its attack on Gobu Tiger and turned north, running away. Wherever it passed, the Ratmen soldiers quickly made way.
"Woo!"
At the same time, a deep horn suddenly echoed from the western forest.
The sound was piercing, reverberating across the three-way battlefield.
The moment the horn sounded, the Ratmen army's assault momentarily stalled.
From the south, north, and west, the Ratmen forces began their retreat.
Ratmen soldiers who had climbed atop the walls turned and jumped back down.
Those scaling siege ladders began climbing down instead.
The dark mass of Ratmen warriors retreated into the forest like a receding tide.
"They're retreating just like that?"
Watching the Ratmen pull back into the forest, Gobu Tiger's eyes flickered with doubt.
The battle had barely started, and they were withdrawing after just reaching the wooden walls?
And where was that one going?
Slightly turning his head, Gobu Tiger looked at the Fire Rat Giant's rapidly disappearing figure.
It was running fast, using both its hands and feet—just like a massive rat wreathed in flames.
At first, it headed north, then suddenly changed course toward the east.
"Wait, the east?"
"Damn it, those despicable fur-covered rats!"
Gobu Tiger grabbed his spiked club and charged after the Fire Rat Giant.
He had a gut feeling that the Ratmen had discovered the hidden goblin boar cavalry in the eastern forest.
And the Fire Rat Giant was heading straight for them.
Though Gobu Tiger didn't believe the Fire Rat Giant alone could do much against ten thousand goblin boar riders, he couldn't ignore it.
Whatever the Fire Rat Giant planned, it would be bad for the goblins.
"Should we order the goblin boar cavalry to attack?"
The Fire Rat Giant was too fast. There was no way to catch up.
Gobu Tiger had already lost sight of it, the view blocked by the wooden walls of the settlement.
By now, the Fire Rat Giant must have been sprinting across the buffer zone outside the northern wall.
"Boom!"
Just as Gobu Tiger rushed to the northern wall, a sudden change erupted in the eastern forest.
A green firelight flared brightly.
A massive explosion sent a towering mushroom cloud of flames rising from the forest.
A deafening blast followed the flash of light, rolling through the battlefield with immense force.
It was as if a small nuclear bomb had been detonated in the eastern woods.
The green flame mushroom cloud soared hundreds of meters into the sky.
A powerful shockwave, engulfed in green fire, expanded outward like a burning wall, consuming everything in its path.
Even from several kilometers away, Gobu Tiger felt a wave of heat rush toward him.
Following the blast, a rain of dirt and burning debris showered the ground.
The sky above the settlement rained fire.
"The Fire Rat Giant self-destructed?"
The moment the explosion occurred, Gobu Tiger felt the Fire Rat Giant's presence vanish.
Seeing this, a chill ran down his spine.
If the Fire Rat Giant had detonated itself on the western battlefield instead, could he have withstood such an explosion?
As the green flames in the eastern forest slowly faded, the Ratmen army had already retreated deep into the woods.
From start to finish, the battle had lasted less than an hour.
As the Ratmen forces withdrew, the vast settlement gradually fell silent.
Only the burning wooden walls and watchtowers remained as evidence of the battle.
Back atop the wooden walls, Gobu Tiger removed his helmet.
Looking at the battlefield littered with Ratmen corpses, he took a deep breath.
Just outside the western wall, thousands of Ratmen bodies lay scattered.
Arrows pierced many of them.
The goblins had a vast supply of crossbows, which had inflicted heavy casualties on the Ratmen.
With the enemy advancing under relentless arrow fire, heavy losses were inevitable.
But all of these bodies—
They were meat.
Gobu Tiger grinned fiercely.
"Boys, we won! Feast to your heart's content!"
His thunderous shout echoed through the settlement.
"Hell yeah! Meat's on the menu!"
"Rat meat! Rat meat!"
"It's Ratmen meat!"
"Same thing, isn't it?"
"Not at all! Rats and Ratmen are completely different."
The goblins on the western wall eagerly poured out of the settlement.
They stripped the fallen Ratmen of their armor and tore into their flesh.
Seeing the western goblins indulging in their meal, the goblins from the southern and northern walls quickly followed suit.
In the darkness beyond the settlement, the sound of gnawing and feasting echoed.
"Why does Ratman meat taste kinda weird?"
"What are you talking about? It's way better than ground mouse meat."
"Damn, look at the size of this rat head."
"Why does it look like a rabbit's head?"
"Burnt too much, probably. Rabbits don't get this big."
"You never know. There are some massive rabbits in the forest."
The gruesome banquet lasted deep into the night.
Only when dawn approached did the settlement fall completely silent.
By morning, as the first light of daybreak painted the eastern sky, all of the Ratmen corpses on the battlefield had vanished.
Even their armor and weapons had been scavenged by the goblins.
Only the bloodstains on the ground told the tale of what had happened.
"How are the casualties?"
Inside the wooden fortress's hall, Gobu Tiger met with Gobu Pig.
Gobu Pig looked battered, with most of his body scorched black.
Half of his face was a mangled mess, as if it had been cooked.
He tried to speak but winced in pain as his burnt skin cracked open further.
Seeing this, Gobu Tiger pulled out a bottle of blood-red potion.
"Drink this."
Gobu Pig's eyes lit up with excitement as he eagerly grabbed the potion.
He popped the cork and gulped it down in one go.
As the red liquid flowed down his throat, warmth spread throughout his body.
A miraculous sight unfolded.
The burned flesh on his body began to regenerate at visible speed.
Charred skin peeled away in large flakes.
Before long, Gobu Pig looked as good as new.
"Now, tell me—how many goblin boar riders did we lose?"
Gobu Pig cautiously touched his once-burned face.
Feeling no pain and finding his skin smooth again, he sighed in relief.
Hearing Gobu Tiger's question, however, his expression quickly turned grim.