Free Web NovelChapter 97: Chapter 82: Home
After a dozen or so attempts, Caocao finally cast the net successfully. When it was pulled back in, Shire saw over thirty fish tangled in the mesh. Each was about the length of an adult’s palm, and they wriggled back and forth after being pulled from the water.
"Excellent. Keep casting just like that," he said, pleased.
The fish in the underground river weren’t very large. They mostly fed on algae, but with no natural predators, their population was substantial.
Caocao tried several more times, succeeding on three of those occasions. By now, Bai Mao was grinning from ear to ear.
"Food, food," Bai Mao repeated endlessly as she gathered the fish. A pile of them was already stacked in front of her, but she still gazed hopefully at the net in Caocao’s hands.
"Alright, that’s enough for now. We have plenty," Shire finally called a halt to the laughing Caocao. The giant was having the time of his life; every time he successfully hauled in a catch, he would whoop and holler for the goblins to hurry up and collect the fish.
He was a far cry from the bag of bones Shire had first met, the one who could only curl up on the ground and stuff handfuls of grass into his mouth.
Now, Caocao was strong and tall, with a constant smile on his face, as happy as a child every single day.
"You all need to process these fish quickly. This is what we’ll be eating next," Shire said to Bai Mao, pointing at the flopping, wriggling fish on the ground.
Bai Mao stared at the mountain of fish before her, her eyes sparkling. When Shire had called a stop just moments ago, she had puffed up her cheeks and pouted in frustration. Only after he explained that they had too many fish and it would take a long time to process them did she reluctantly agree.
While Shire was teaching Buck Teeth and Caocao the finer points of casting the net, Bai Mao had already run off to fetch the other female goblins. Each armed with a Small Knife, they began processing the catch with skilled, rapid movements. Shire even caught a glimpse of one female goblin grabbing a fish by the tail and smacking it repeatedly, as if she were mincing garlic.
"We should move the mess hall here in the future. It’ll be convenient for both cooking and getting water." He watched Bai Mao skillfully gutting the fish. She was laughing freely, and at one point, she cackled as she grabbed a fish and tossed it at another female goblin, her two pigtails swinging with the motion.
"Getting through this winter shouldn’t be a problem," Shire breathed a sigh of relief. Between this underground river and the Teleportation Gate, he was confident they could survive even if they had to hole up in the Fortress all winter without hunting.
"Caocao loves playing catch fish," the Giant said, plopping down cross-legged beside Shire and leaning in with a grin.
"You can play again after they’re finished," Shire reassured him. He didn’t even come up to the Giant’s waist now, so he always had to tilt his head back to speak with Caocao.
He sized Caocao up and down. ’Caocao’s bed will need to be custom-made. That’s going to be a pain,’ he thought, a headache forming. ’Oh well, I’ll let the carpenters in Yangjiao Town worry about it.’
"You all keep practicing with the net, and be careful not to fall in the river," he instructed Buck Teeth and the other goblins. Then, he and Caocao left the platform. It was time to take stock of his herbs and plan out the next batch of Alchemy Potions.
After ducking through the passageway, Caocao simply picked Shire up, set him on his shoulders, and took off with long, powerful strides.
After passing through a stone chamber, Shire saw a few goblins working up ahead. He patted the Giant’s forehead. "Caocao, put me down."
Then, as if he were a little chick being picked up, he was set down on the ground.
"How many Bang-Bang Fruits do we have stored?" Shire asked, walking over to Nine-finger.
Nine-finger was directing ten goblins as they stored a freshly picked batch of Bang-Bang Fruits in the warehouse.
Winter was fast approaching, and a lot of fruit in the Bang Bang Forest was already falling from the trees, so Shire had to speed up their collection efforts.
"We’ve already filled two of the small stone chambers, Chief," Nine-finger said, pointing with his one arm toward the chambers ahead. "We’ll gather more as quickly as we can."
"Good. But be extremely careful not to cause any explosions," Shire stressed. The last thing he wanted was for his subordinates to get hurt.
"Rest assured, Chief," Nine-finger nodded. "Everyone is being extremely careful. We’re aiming to fill one more chamber."
"You said these fruits would make us stronger, Chief. Everyone wants to stockpile as many as possible so we don’t have to live in constant fear," he said with a completely serious expression.
Shire smiled and shook his head slightly. ’All that’s missing now,’ he thought, ’are some motivational posters on the wall: "Work Hard, Work Fast, Seize the Day!" and "Safety First for Steady Progress!"’
"Alright," Shire said, changing the subject. "Have you noticed any changes since you drank that bowl of water last time?"
"I have!" Nine-finger immediately raised his hand in excitement. "Look, Chief!"
FWOOSH. A small flame appeared on his raised fingertip, swaying and flickering.
"That’s it?" Shire stared at the flame. ’I suddenly have the urge to pull out a smoke and light it,’ he thought.
"For now, this is all I can do."
Shire gave a resigned smile and pulled up Nine-finger’s status panel.
[Name: Nine-finger]
[Race: Goblin]
[Danger Level: 0.9, A capable good-for-nothing]
[Personality: Loyal]
[Ability: Rocket Technique (Awakening)]
’So it really is hard for a goblin to awaken a Magic Ability,’ he thought. He patted Nine-finger’s arm encouragingly. "Keep at it."
Nine-finger didn’t say a word, only giving a firm nod.
After reminding his men to be careful one last time, Shire headed straight for the herb storage. He needed to arrange the next batch of Alchemy Potion production as soon as possible.
"I wonder how ’Drink Undying’ is doing," he muttered to himself.
