"That plain is called The Plain of Graves. Over 200 years ago, a great battle took place there between the Salad Kingdom's Army and the Goblin King's Army. Many died in that conflict, and the Goblin King was slain. The blood, malice, resentment, and other dark emotions left behind by the dead eventually formed a Dungeon that can only be accessed at midnight."
Laura raised her hand as if to adjust her glasses but quickly remembered that she wasn't wearing any in this world. Instead, she raised her hand higher to tuck her hair behind her ear, her cheeks slightly reddening.
Dian didn't notice her little embarrassing action and continued, "The main point we should focus on is the existence of the Goblin King. Although he was slain, the source of the goblins might not have been dealt with yet, which could explain their presence in this forest now."
Laura finally understood the implication of his assumption. "That's entirely possible," she agreed. "Maybe this silent area is also a hidden Dungeon?"
Dian shook his head in response. "No. I already checked the ground and the trees with my skill, but no Dungeon panel appeared. I think the source is deeper in the forest," he said.
As he spoke, Dian suddenly recalled the crowd of goblins that Laura had mentioned earlier. "That's right! Maybe the source is located where the place of those hundreds of goblins is," he presumed.
Just as Laura was about to agree with him, she suddenly heard something different from the sounds of the crowding goblins. "Wait—" said Laura, raising her hand again.
She closed her eyes and focused on her sense of hearing. "There's another group. They aren't goblins. Judging by the sound of their footsteps, they must be taller and heavier than goblins. They're wearing steel armor and marching straight toward the goblin crowd!"
As Dian processed Laura's discovery, his shock grew. What was this new group?
"They also number over a hundred," Laura added, opening her eyes.
"What should we do? Should we continue or retreat?" she asked.
Dian crossed his arms and looked at the ground between his feet as he began to weigh the options seriously.
'Going straight to them would be reckless. The goblins alone present a formidable threat. If this new group is hostile as well, we would be doomed.'
'However...'
He raised his head and looked into Laura's eyes. She was hiding her emotions well, but he could see that she was clearly eager to find out what was happening. He felt the same curiosity.
As he hesitated, a sentence that Maria once told him echoed in his mind.
—... If you go west beyond this Midnight Forest, you will arrive at Jula Town, which is under the jurisdiction of the Mallio Alliance.
An idea struck Dian. "By any chance..." he said, looking into Laura's eyes with a smile, "could this new group be a band of humans?"
Looking at Dian's smile, Laura had a sudden realization. She understood his thought process and a similar idea began to form in her mind.
She smiled back, but as she was about to adjust her glasses—and again realized that she wasn't wearing any—she stopped her hand from reaching her face, a bead of sweat forming on her cheek out of embarrassment.
Dian noticed her action and gave her a funny look. "Actually, there's a high possibility of it... And stop looking at me like that! T-this... is because I haven't used..."
Suddenly, Laura covered her face with her hands and crouched down. "Uuhhhhh...!" she let out softly, overwhelmed by embarrassment.
If this were an anime, steam would be rising from her head by now.
...
—The day before this day.
In Jula Town, located at the west end of the Midnight Forest, a terrified young Adventurer ran frantically toward the gate, screaming, "Goblin...! There are goblins. A lot of them! My friends... They're dying...! Aahhhhh!!"
He kneeled down before the two guards standing at the town gate, tears soaking his face. "They're coming... Hundreds of them!"
The two guards exchanged troubled glances. Ultimately, they decided to report the young Adventurer's claims to their superiors. After sending the message, they took care of the young man, assuring him he could rest at the guard post for a while. The young Adventurer complied, still in a state of shock.
About two hours later, the captain of Jula Town's soldiers, Tamuhall Hugh, received the message and proceeded to send a small scouting team to investigate the validity of the young Adventurer's claims.
And the answer exceeded their expectations. It turned out there was a cave-like hidden dungeon in the Midnight Forest that hadn't been discovered until now. This dungeon was on the verge of an outbreak!
The appraiser among the scouting team reported that although the dungeon was ranked D and named Goblin's Lair, there were already over eight hundred goblins present, which was concerning.
This information left the Lord of Jula in a panic. Even though he had immediately sent messages for reinforcements to nearby towns and cities, they wouldn't arrive in time for the impending outbreak.
He made a quick decision. First, he ordered a small contingent of soldiers to lead the townsfolk to seek refuge in the city. Next, he organized the stronger members of his soldiers and formed an army of over one hundred men to march straight to the Goblin's Lair, to stall for time while his people retreated. He even sought help from adventurers by posting a recruitment request at the town's bulletin board. He managed to gather an additional 23 experienced adventurers to aid his soldiers in this operation.
The army departed from the now silent town of Jula early in the morning, already packing their supplies and beginning their march before dawn.
Since there weren't many horses in a small town like Jula, the army marched on foot. Only important figures, such as the Lord himself, rode horses.
Hages, the leader of Jula's adventurers, spurred his horse to ride alongside the Lord. He noticed a potential problem that concerned him.
"My Lord, while goblins are weak and not particularly intelligent, they can be quite cunning. According to the information from your scouts, there are hundreds of them. Without a strong leader, goblins wouldn't be able to coexist peacefully. We should consider the worst-case scenario and conserve as much energy as possible. In other words..."
The Lord of Jula, Rojiot Jula, turned his head toward Hages, sensing his hesitation.
"What do you have in mind? Feel free to offer your advice," said the Lord.
Hages felt relieved to receive this approval, no longer afraid of offending anyone. Among adventurers, there was a story about a young adventurer who killed a nobleman's son after that nobleman's son had molested his sister. In the end, the entire family of the young man was executed by the nobleman when he discovered what had happened.
Opposing the nobility always led to trouble, and this was even more true here in the Alliance, where clans ruled with iron fists. While Lord Rojiot Jula was among the kinder nobles, confronting any member of the nobility could still be intimidating.
"Rather than going straight to the dungeon, we should focus on reducing their numbers. We could target smaller groups of goblins. Our goal is to buy time. With this approach, we could minimize casualties within our ranks while continuing to deal damage to the goblins. We might even have a chance to prevent the dungeon from breaking out and stall long enough for reinforcements to arrive."
Rojiot Jula seriously considered Hages' suggestion for a moment before breaking into a smile.
"Splendid," he praised.
He then halted his horse and turned toward the soldiers behind him.
"Soldiers of Jula!" he called.
"Hah!"
The trained soldiers immediately stopped when they heard their Lord's call. They stood tall, chests raised, weapons at the ready.
The adventurers were confused and looked around, unsure of what to do. They managed to calm themselves down and began to mimic the soldiers after Hages signaled them to follow the soldiers' lead.
The Lord nodded in satisfaction as he observed that the army had formed somewhat neat lines.
"This man, Hages, has proposed a more effective strategy for dealing with the goblins. I know you must be confused, my soldiers, as you have been trained differently. However, our enemy this time is monsters. When dealing with monsters, adventurers are the masters. So, pay attention!"
The soldiers fell silent, listening intently. When the Lord gestured for Hages to step forward, they immediately focused their attention on him.
"Now, Hages, tell them the way."
Hages felt nervous and sweaty standing before so many people, his thin beard growing sticky with perspiration.
"Y-yes, my Lord..."
But he obeyed, driven by his desire to protect Jula Town, which was his hometown.
"Alright, guys... uh, everyone!"
He took a deep breath and forced a grin.
"Now listen..."