Green Monster Epic

Chapter 1 Green-skinned Goblin

The goblin Allen, 18 years old, was tall and sturdy, with muscles rippling across his body. The way he walked, full of vigor, made it clear he was not someone to be trifled with.

Carefully wetting the sparse hairs on his head with the murky water from the mud pit, he combed them back into a slicked-back style. After grooming his appearance, Allen nodded in satisfaction, considering his morning ablutions complete. As a sapient race, they possessed some sense of aesthetics, and Allen didn't want to spend his days covered in dirt, living in ignorance like the rest of his tribe.

His leather armor was covered in another layer of dust. Allen looked at the meager amount of water in the mud pit, then at the armor, and finally gave up. Washing the leather armor with the water from this pit might actually make it dirtier than it already was.

Besides, this mud pit was the tribe's closest water source. If Allen stirred up the little water that was left, when the tribesmen woke up, half of what they drank would be mud. Although the tribesmen might not care, Allen thought it best to avoid trouble. He was just a youth in the tribe and should keep a low profile.

"Allen, I'm hungry."

A familiar voice came from behind. Without turning around, Allen knew the voice belonged to his good friend, Stone, who looked similar to him but had a missing piece on one of his pointy ears.

Stone was the only person Allen trusted among the dozens of tribesmen in the Green Field Tribe. He was also Allen's shadow, rarely leaving Allen's sight from waking up in the morning until going to sleep at night. Because the seemingly simple-minded Stone knew that following Allen meant good food, instead of going hungry most of the time like the other tribesmen.

"Be hungry then!"

Allen glared at Stone, annoyed. The guy's stomach was a bottomless pit. He spent most of his energy every day finding food with this guy to fill his belly. Of course, most of the fifty or sixty people in the Green Field Tribe lived the same way as Allen and Stone, except they were worse off, expending effort to find food but often coming up empty-handed.

"No, let's go hunting!"

Stone shook his head, his face pleading, and pulled Allen to go out.

"Alright, alright, go wash up first, or don't expect me to take you out!"

Allen couldn't help it. Stone was tall, strong, and powerful, able to help him carry heavy objects and attract enemy fire in dangerous situations. Although it was a bit of a hassle, he just treated it as raising a humanoid pet, which could also pass the time.

Of course, passing the time meant having a fight with Stone to see who had the harder fist, or chatting with the inarticulate Stone about what happened in the tribe today.

"Okay!"

Receiving a definite answer, Stone happily ran to the mud pit, stirred up a storm, and returned with a face full of mud.

"Sigh!"

It seemed the tribesmen would really be drinking mud soup for lunch today.

The wilderness was vast but somewhat desolate. Besides the sparsely growing shrubs and grass, and a few tall trees dotted on the horizon, most of it was yellowish-brown bedrock eroded by the wilderness winds and rain. The animals living there were naturally not few, but not too many either. Large, gregarious herbivores generally didn't favor this barren land because it couldn't support such animals. Only solitary or family-based herbivores like goats or porcupines, and small predators like sand foxes and yellow wolves, struggled to survive here.

Like the Green Field Tribe, a small tribe with only 50-60 people, unable to compete for more fertile territory, they could only endure day after day in the remote and barren land.

Taking advantage of the fact that the tribesmen were still lazily sleeping in the morning, Allen quietly slipped out of the village with Stone, heading towards the place where they had set traps a few days ago. Goblins were gluttonous and lazy. They generally wouldn't get out of bed and leave the village to find food unless they were really starving. Only a few lively little cubs weakly lay in the arms of the females, watching Allen and Stone's secretive figures sneaking out.

Once out of the village, Allen and Stone were much more at ease. Facing the sun's gentle rays, feeling the constant breeze, although in the tropics, Allen and Stone didn't feel too much heat.

"Come on, let's do 300 frog jumps and see who jumps to that bitter jujube tree first! Whoever gets there first gets an extra leg to eat later!!!"

Allen raised the mace in his hand over his head, squatted down to prepare, and looked at Stone beside him with a bitter face and reluctance.

Goblins didn't get much in a day, so they wouldn't engage in strenuous exercise unless absolutely necessary, in order to conserve energy and last longer. Saying they were lazy might also be their helpless choice. Who told them that there weren't many animals in the territory occupied by the tribe, and the gains were small!

"Okay!"

Unable to resist Allen's burning gaze, Stone finally gave in, raised the ironwood stick in his hand, and lowered his body to prepare.

"Let's go!!"

"Pa! Pa! Pa!"

The two goblins, like sand frogs, leaned forward and jumped far, seemingly slow but actually quickly moving towards the few-meter-high dwarf tree Allen pointed to.

Allen had understood after living in Green Field for eighteen years. If you wanted to survive and live well here, the most important thing was to have strong skills, otherwise you were just waiting to die. Chieftain Claw Split and his two confidants lived very comfortably in the tribe and were never seen starving. What was the reason? It was because they were strong enough, and they took most of the prey they hunted, leaving the rest for the other goblins.

Now Allen was working hard to hone his strength, waiting to challenge Claw Split in two years and take the position of chieftain. When that time came, it would be his, Allen's, good days to throw his weight around!!

Thinking of this, Allen was even more motivated, exerting force with his feet, jumping farther with each jump, and quickly leaving Stone behind.

"Allen, wait for me!!"

Stone was also anxious. If he exerted so much effort and still couldn't win against Allen, wouldn't he get to eat one less meat leg if they hunted prey this morning? Immediately, Stone no longer held back, his powerful legs sinking deep into the sandy stone, chasing after Allen's figure, gradually closing the distance between them.

By the time the two of them, sweaty and embarrassed, jumped under the bitter jujube tree, their stomachs, which hadn't gotten much food last night, began to rebel, making thunderous gurgling sounds, reminding Allen and Stone of their bodies' needs.

"Let's run another five li!"

Feeling he had rested enough, Allen stood up again and shouted to Stone.

"Can't run, Allen, hungry."

Stone leaned against the tree and swayed as he stood up, his face becoming more and more bitter.

"If you don't run to the place where we set the traps, you're not eating anything!!"

Allen kicked the other's calf, annoyed, and gave Stone a glare.

"Oh, right."

Stone smiled innocently, scratching his messy hair with his hand.

"Let's go!!"

Two figures, once again facing the morning sun, ran madly forward.