Red kept his eyes on the wounded goblins, and he could tell the green glow eased their pain. On top of that, the bleeding also stopped as the wound slowly closed in.
'This is magic!'
What he witnessed was a miraculous occurrence. He didn't know how the Shaman did it, but he was certain that it might be magic.
Red finally found out what magic could do, then he let out a disappointed sigh. He finally found someone who could perform magic, but it was the Shaman. If he came to the Shaman and told that old goblin about his high stat in magic. The Shaman would try to kill him even harder instead of teaching him magic.
He buried the thought of learning magic for now and focused on the Matron who questioned the two wounded goblins.
There was another goblin tribe, quite far from here. He didn't know the actual distance, but these three goblins came from that tribe. Apparently, their tribe was attacked by a massive pack of dire wolves, and they ran here to ask for help.
This was his first time hearing about dire wolves, but he could not help but connect them with the dire lupus. Both had a similar name. Then a figure came into his mind, the big beast that showed up in his hunt yesterday.
The Matrons were discussing the situation, whether they should respond to the request in kind or refuse them. When the Chief was not around, the Matrons would make the decision.
The warrior had no voice in the matter, let alone the hunter. The hunter's duty was to hunt for food for the tribe.
Red was trying to overhear the discussion, but he was too far from them. The murmur among the warriors made it harder for him to pick up what they talked about.
That was when he met with the Shaman's shrewd gaze. He was taller than most of the goblins around him. His tall figure was hard to miss, and that was when their eyes met for a moment, and he was sure the Shaman was smiling at him.
He had a bad premonition that the Shaman might plot something against him. The curse didn't work, so the Shaman must have thought of something to get rid of him.
Red hoped it was just his feeling. Life had gotten better for him lately, and he hoped for it to continue. As he waited for the discussion of what the tribe wanted to do, his eyes were on the two wounded goblins.
Their wounds were healed, unfortunately, the magic could not regrow their missing Red. That made him wonder whether magic was capable of regrowing a missing limb. He was distracted by magic, thinking of what magic was capable of doing.
Red didn't realize the discussion was over as the Matrons had come up with a decision. It wasn't until someone nudged him that he realized his name was called.
The Matrons called him, and the warriors made a path for him. This was when he realized that the Shaman truly plotted something against him.
Deep inside, he was nervous, thinking about what the Shaman's plot was as he walked over. He was too nervous to come up with a possibility. He stopped a few meters from the Matrons.
"Our allied tribe is attacked by the Dire Wolf, and it's our duty to help them out. They believe the dire wolf was led by the Dire Wolf King, and only our Chief could fight the Dire Wolf King."
Red listened to the Matron, confused about what the Matron tried to say. If only the Chief could see the Dire Wolf King, then why was she calling him? It was not long ago that he was allowed to go out. He was no different than a wolf cub if the Dire Wolf King was equal to the Chief.
"The Chief might return soon; only then can we send actual reinforcements. But before that, we need information, and you will play a big role in this information gathering."
That was when he connected the dots. His eyes widened in surprise and unconsciously glanced toward the Shaman. That was when he saw the old goblin smile deviously at him.
"You will lead four hunters to scout the situation in our allied tribe. They said their Chief was still fighting the Dire Wolf King when they left to ask for reinforcement. Confirm their situation, that's your main objective, understand?"
Red was angry at the Shaman, but he controlled his emotion, and maybe Levelheaded at level 14 helped to control his emotion. Accepting the task was the same as suicide, but that was the problem. He could not refuse the order as well.
If he refused the order, he would not just lose the favor he had built up with the Matrons. He might be shunned as a coward by the tribe, and worst, he might be executed for refusing the order.
"Yes!"
The only choice for him was to accept the task.
"Your second objective is to find out about this dire wolf pack in case our allied tribe's chief failed to kill them all. We need to know their numbers and their condition so we can be prepared for their attack."
"Yes!"
"Run if the dire wolf pack spots you. Remember, your duty is to gather information and return alive!" The Matron in charge added.
Red honestly was surprised to hear that last part, not expecting the reminder. He thought the Matrons might tell him to fight the dire wolf pack if he met them, but it seemed his effort to bring back the marget was not useless.
'I just need to return alive!'
"If you return alive, I will commend your effort and contribution to the Chief. That will help you to get a spot in the Warrior quickly!"
The Matron then tapped his arm. She tried to reach his shoulder, but he was too tall for her. "I allow you to have more meals before leaving. Go ahead and fill your belly."
Red was not in the mood for a meal after being sent on a suicide mission. However, this might be his last meal, so he didn't want to miss it. He nodded and ran back to the kitchen.
Darla didn't know what happened, and she was not aware that he was allowed to have more meals. He was in a pickle situation, wondering how to tell Darla that he could have more food.
Fortunately, the old man returned to the kitchen. The old man seemed to be in the crowd as well, and he told Darla to serve him food.
"Enjoy your last food, kid."
The old man grinned at him before leaving the kitchen again.
Darla was certainly confused. She spoke in her human language, asking what happened. But Red didn't understand anything she said.
"I will be leaving, and I might not return."
He said that, not in a human language, so Darla didn't understand. But that didn't matter whether she understood or not. He just felt like saying it. He left after finishing seven bowls of gruel and ten potatoes.
When Red left the kitchen, he met Shaman at the door. The old goblin was grinning ear to ear when their eyes met.
"I hope you enjoy your last meal."
The Shaman left while cackling afterward. He waited for him at the door just to say that.
A thought flashed in Red's head when he saw the back of the Shaman. He thought of attacking the Shaman right now. He wanted to drag that old goblin with him, but he decided not to.
There was a chance that the dire wolf pack would leave the allied tribe, and he might not meet them. That meant he still had a chance to return alive.
Red met with the four hunters that Matron mentioned. Those four hunters were the kids of his generation who had just recently been appointed as hunters. They all looked nervous while waiting for him.
He thought it could not get worse, yet here he was. These four hunters might try to kill him before he could meet the dire wolf pack.