Gobulo and Jerry didn't return to rest until midnight. The day's hunt hadn't gone as smoothly as expected; they only found two low-level magical beasts: a venomous snake and a wild boar. Working together, they easily took down these beasts and secured two first-order magic crystals.
They had also encountered other magical beasts during their hunt, but those seemed too powerful, so they wisely chose to retreat rather than engage.
After a long day, Gobulo felt hunger creeping back. On their way home, he nibbled on the venomous snake like it was a spicy snack, while Jerry devoured an entire leg of the wild boar. Jerry, on the other hand, managed to eat two legs.
Gobulo hid the remaining carcasses, planning to use them for breakfast the next morning. He didn't conceal them particularly well, reasoning that if they were stolen, he wouldn't mind much; he could simply hunt more the next day.
After a day's effort, Gobulo's experience bar had reached 1.3%, and he still had plenty of magical beast meat in his stomach waiting to be digested, which could push his experience to over 2%. This rate of leveling up was faster than he had anticipated.
The next morning at dawn, Gobulo woke up. He glanced over at Jerry, who was still fast asleep. Gobulo grabbed Jerry's shoulder and gave him a vigorous shake.
With just a couple of shakes, Jerry was awake. At first, he seemed ready to get angry, but upon realizing it was Gobulo, he kept his mouth shut.
Gobulo asked, "Are you hungry?"
"Grumble, grumble." Jerry's stomach answered for him, and he quickly perked up.
"Let's go, time to eat."
"Mm!"
The two didn't bother hiding their movements, yet none of the surrounding Goblins stirred. It wasn't until they stepped outside, and Jerry accidentally trod on another Goblin's head, that one finally woke up.
"Ah! That hurts!"
The startled Goblin opened his eyes, preparing to confront whoever had stepped on him. But upon seeing the massive Gobulo, he immediately softened his expression, turning as docile as a kitten.
"Come with me, or I'll beat you," Gobulo said coldly.
Hearing this, the Goblin quickly rose and obediently followed behind them.
Soon, the trio arrived at the spot where Gobulo had hidden yesterday's carcasses, only to find them gnawed down to bones. Gobulo didn't mind, but Jerry was visibly upset.
"What's your name?" Gobulo asked the new Goblin.
"I'm Liam."
"Good, Liam. Do you want to eat your fill?"
"Yes!"
"If you do, then listen to me and come with me."
"Why will I get to eat my fill if I listen to you?"
"Don't ask so many questions, just do as I say, or I'll beat you."
Liam fell silent.
"Why aren't you talking?"
"You told me not to ask too many questions."
...
Gobulo was left speechless, unsure if he was more baffled by himself or by Liam's literal obedience.
The three then began hunting in the usual grounds. Although they had an extra member, their teamwork didn't suffer much, primarily because Jerry and Liam followed Gobulo's instructions diligently, making minimal mistakes.
Mistakes didn't matter much anyway, as their targets were generally weak creatures.
This morning's hunt went exceptionally well, though Gobulo remained cautious. Without a skill to gauge the level of magical beasts, he relied on intuition and the beasts' appearances to judge their strength, which was risky. Yet, given his current weakness, taking risks was necessary to survive in the perilous Monster Forest.
By late morning, they had hunted four magical beasts: two rabbit-like ones, a venomous snake, and another wild boar.
Wild boars seemed abundant in the valley. Gobulo mused that calling it Wild Boar Valley wouldn't be far off.
After some thought, he presented the wild boar to Jerry and Liam. "You two eat this wild boar; I'll take care of the rest."
Jerry and Liam were shocked to see Gobulo offering the largest beast.
In reality, Gobulo knew that although the rabbit and snake beasts were smaller, they contained the concentrated magic of an entire beast. Logically, the magical power in their meat should be denser than in larger beasts like wild boars.
So he aimed to consume less meat while gaining the most magic power.
Jerry and Liam, unaware of Gobulo's reasoning, simply wanted to eat their fill.
After consuming both rabbits and the snake, though the rabbits were plump, Gobulo felt only about eighty percent full. However, he refrained from taking more food from Jerry and Liam. If possible, he preferred to eat smaller magical beasts with denser magic.
Jerry and Liam had varying appetites; Jerry's was average. In the end, they couldn't finish the wild boar. Gobulo didn't insist they eat it all, letting them keep the remaining meat for later.
Noon was when the Goblins typically went hunting. They needed to gather enough food for the Trolls, or risk their wrath.
Watching the determined hunting party, Gobulo pondered. Each magical beast should yield a magic crystal. So, where had the crystals from the Trolls' consumed beasts gone? He was genuinely curious.
Did the Trolls discard the crystals, eat them, or hide them?
He doubted they ate them, as holding a magic crystal revealed its violent energy, likely harmful if consumed raw. Even if the Trolls were simple-minded, eating them seemed unlikely.
The possibility of discarding them was also slim. Magic crystals were beautiful and valuable. The most likely scenario was that the Trolls hoarded them.
If they were hidden, Gobulo imagined it as a treasure trove. After years of accumulation, he could only speculate how many magic crystals might be inside.