"Should we intervene?"

Laplace twirled, eyes glinting with cunning. "Those monsters around that guy look tough."

"They tamed the Kijin, now the Goblins."

Footman, the Angry Clown, wasn't as volatile as his title suggested. "Feels like they're planning something."

"No intervention?"

"This'll ruin Clayman's plans."

Footman wanted to test Damien's depths; Tear urged caution.

"Too conspicuous."

Tear fidgeted with her sleeves, hesitant. "The Demon Lords will notice, right?"

The four Kijin were already formidable.

A fight would cause a ruckus.

With Treyni the Dryad present, they dared not provoke her.

"Report to Clayman and let him handle it."

The trio preferred to stay out, as Clayman led the Jura Forest scheme.

If anyone should worry, it was him.

"Then let's find Clayman."

"Wonder how he'll deal with this intruder."

The clowns lurked in the shadows, watching the group.

Sakurako's team, unaware, had caught a Demon Lord's eye.

Swish, swish, swish~~

Moonlight bathed the vast grassland, silver glow weaving with dark green into a mystic calm.

A gentle night breeze rustled the grass, whispering the plain's secrets.

Dozens of giant wolves dashed across, their forms flickering like lunar phantoms.

The Goblins' mass movement drew not only the clowns but other forest monsters.

Among them were the Direwolves, who, in the original story, attacked Goblin villages for forest dominance.

Howl~~

On a hill, a massive Direwolf howled.

Behind it, hundreds awaited their alpha's orders on attacking the migrating Goblins.

"Father!"

A young Direwolf, the alpha's heir and strongest of its generation, returned from scouting.

"Did you learn why the Goblins left?"

"I smelled Kijin!"

"Kijin?"

The alpha recalled the forest's Kijin, B-rank Majin far beyond their C-rank.

Despite numerical advantage, facing them made the alpha hesitate.

"The Goblins submitted to the Kijin?"

"We can't let them reach their village!"

If they did, the Kijin's strength, bolstered by Goblin soldiers, would hinder the Direwolves' rise.

Veldora's presence still lingered, and the forest's monsters hadn't begun their brutal infighting.

The clowns, at Clayman's behest, were stirring chaos.

But it hadn't fully started.

The Direwolves numbered 1,000, more than in the original story.

With coordination, they could challenge the Kijin village.

They'd likely lose, though.

"If the Kijin lose their numbers disadvantage, no tribe could rival them!"

The alpha, decided, declared, "Attack the Goblins now!"

"But, Father, if the Kijin find out?"

"We'll flee east!"

The alpha saw clearly: killing Goblins would boost their existence value.

Migrating east, where Kijin weren't adept trackers, would keep them safe.

Now was the perfect time.

Each Goblin killed yielded Magicules.

For intelligent forest monsters, conquest was the best way to raise existence value.

Race versus race warfare.

The victor reigned; the loser fell to dust.

Unlike Ogerpon's instantaneous Growth skill, racial conquest took time.

Months at least, years at most.

Leading its pack to wipe out the Goblins, the alpha believed it could gain a powerful skill.

An Extra Skill was guaranteed; a Unique Skill wasn't impossible.

In the original story, Goblins dwindled to a couple thousand due to attacks from Direwolves and others.

'This chance can't be missed!'

The alpha saw it as a golden opportunity.

Goblins roaming freely could be culled without breaking monster codes.

"Feel that?"

A masked Kijin ninja, Sounin, trained alongside Souei since childhood.

Using thought communication, the four could share intel and decide swiftly.

"Yes."

Sakurako nodded. "Three kilometers back, a group of C-rank-plus monsters is gathering fast."

"Numbers…"

"At least 500."

"What are they?"

Sakurako rarely left the village, knowing little of the outside.

Sounin, having done mercenary work, recognized them. "Direwolves."

"The largest Direwolf pack in the forest."

The Jura Forest hosted multiple Direwolf tribes, from 50 to a few hundred.

This pack, led by the alpha, was the biggest.

"What do they want?"

"Likely targeting our Goblins."

Hidden in darkness, Sounin observed the forest's hunters.

A single Direwolf was C-rank.

In a pack, their strength scaled with numbers.

Over 500 together reached C+ on average.

If the alpha unified the Direwolves and culled the Goblins, they might form a 2,000–3,000-strong B-rank army.

Even the Kijin village would struggle, risking collapse.

***

Bonus Chapter:

100 Power Stones = 1 BC

300 Power Stones = 2 BC

500 Power Stones = 3 BC

700 Power Stones = 4 BC

1000 Power Stones = 5 BC

***

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