Mayor Panasolei lifted his head, squinting briefly at the sunlight streaming through the window, his tone apologetic. "Pardon me, the warm sunlight makes one drowsy."
Ainzach shook his head lightly. "The matter is unusual. I meant to notify you specifically, but I didn't expect you to come in person."
"Your Honor should take better care of your health." Rakheshir added with a smile.
"You know me, always a bit lazy." Panasolei chuckled.
The conversation flowed easily, their camaraderie evident.
"Well then, let's get to business." Panasolei said.
At that, Ainzach and Rakheshir's expressions grew serious.
Panasolei's corpulent, seemingly incompetent appearance belied his true nature. His friends knew he was far from incapable, rather, he was exceptionally shrewd and capable.
E-Rantel, the Re-Estize Kingdom's vital border city, stood on the frontline against the Baharuth Empire.
No foolish king would send an incompetent to govern E-Rantel.
And this generation's king was no fool. Bypassing noble hierarchies to appoint Gazef, a commoner, as Warrior Captain and form a new army proved as much.
"Here's the situation." Ainzach began. "Over the past half-month, goblin attacks on villages and caravans have dropped significantly. Recently, there've been no reports of goblin assaults at all."
Rakheshir, the Magician's Guild president, frowned. "Isn't that a good thing?"
"It's not just about the immediate situation." Ainzach replied, clasping his hands on the table. "Based on past experience, these months are when goblins breed rapidly, and attacks peak. This abnormal behavior suggests something unknown is happening in the Great Forest of Tob."
Panasolei, who had been listening quietly, spoke unhurriedly. "What's the outcome?"
He didn't waste breath asking if Ainzach had investigated, their presence here meant results had been obtained.
"Indeed." Ainzach nodded. "Reports from several adventurer teams in the forest's outskirts indicate a disturbance in the Eastern Giant's ogre territory. The forest reeks of goblin blood."
"There's evidence of mass goblin deaths, but oddly, few corpses remain. Based on current intelligence, we can rule out a powerful adventurer team, as that would leave many bodies."
Ainzach paused, lifting his silver vessel and downing its chilled contents.
"You suspect infighting among the goblin tribes in the ogre territory." Rakheshir said gravely.
"Or perhaps a clash between the Wise King of the Forest and the Eastern Giant for some unknown reason." Panasolei added, eyes half-closed.
"Exactly." Ainzach agreed. "For now, it's to our benefit."
"Keep monitoring it." Panasolei instructed.
"Understood." Ainzach replied.
In the Great Forest of Tob, by a riverside, Adam was unaware of the meeting in E-Rantel sparked by his actions.
Even without knowing the details, he understood that slaughtering vast numbers of goblins would have effects beyond the forest.
In the first half-month, his kills were fewer.
Those sparse goblin corpses were naturally consumed by jungle beasts and magical creatures.
But now, the sheer volume of goblin bodies he'd left behind would cause serious trouble if not handled.
For one, it would draw the ogres, which Adam had no intention of provoking yet.
Moreover, the drastic reduction in goblins would catch the attention of E-Rantel's adventurers.
Many low-level adventurers relied on goblin-slaying for easy coin.
If they found piles of goblin corpses in the outskirts, the wounds alone could reveal details about Adam.
That was something he wanted to avoid.
The more information he leaked now, the more the Great Tomb of Nazarick would learn later.
This intelligence war began the moment Adam chose to stand against Nazarick!
Thus, he stored all 2,000-plus goblins and over 30 ogres he'd slain in his Item Box.
The Player ability's Item Box was vast, easily accommodating them all, though it gave Adam a sense of its capacity limits.
The corpses filled a third of the Item Box's volume.
It seemed large, but for a level 100 player, it was insufficient.
In the anime, Ainz's 500 million gold coins for Shalltear's revival would nearly fill Adam's Item Box.
For now, though, it sufficed.
The deaths of over 2,000 goblins and 30 ogres broke five iron swords, numbed Adam to killing, and left him colder.
He'd come to the river today for a bath and paused his goblin hunt to rest and recalibrate his emotions.
Sated, Adam glanced at his status panel.
[Status Panel]
[Talent: Player]
[Total Level: 19Lv]
[Experience: 5893/9500]
[Classes:
Basic Class: Genius 9Lv (Warrior, etc.)] Mid-Tier Class: Sword Saint 10Lv]
[Skill Points: 39]
[Passive Skills: Item Box, Slash Enhancement (10%)]
[Active Skills:
Warrior: Instant Reflex, Fourfold Slash of Light, Rapid Slash, Stealth, Tracking] Magic: Minor Healing (1st-tier), Magic Arrow (1st-tier), Odorless (1st-tier), Camouflage (1st-tier), Warm (2nd-tier), Papermaking (2nd-tier), Item Appraisal (2nd-tier)] Class Skills: Pharmacy, Alchemy]
The Genius class didn't boost stats, so his attributes remained unchanged, but his skill set had grown significantly.
***
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