Goblin Knight - Chapter 311



Only Noblemtl

EP.311 Time Problem (19)

“Excuse me for being so late. Luckily, you’re still awake, huh? How’s things going with that lady?”

Blanc slowly shook his head, slightly taken aback by Nicola’s late visit.

The tin man shrugged his shoulders as if he felt regret.

“Oh, dear. Things never go wrong when the merchant is confident. Was it bad timing? If so, I’ll step aside.”

“No… that’s fine. If I just sit there feeling depressed, I’ll just feel more depressed.”

Blanc asked, consciously turning his head away so as not to let Annelie out of his sight.

“So what’s going on? Have you come to give me some advice on the development of the rippling lands that will begin tomorrow?”

“Well, that’s something too, but… … .”

“Do you think this story will go on for too long? That’s a good thing. I also wanted to ask you something. Let’s get to know each other.”

“Hmm.”

The tin man nodded and sat down on a chair that had been lying nearby.

I wondered if the chair was able to support that huge body without breaking. Was it the power of ancient technology?

“Then you go first, you special organisms. What I have to say is more of a request.”

“Please. You can listen to it and decide, but… they are special organisms. Did you know that?”

“I thought the whole party was quite diverse. How is it that none of the races are the same? Goblins, ghouls, werewolves… .”

“Goul… I… Yeah, if you categorize by species, then… … .”

“A werewolf? Is Trasha really a werewolf?”

“No? Honestly, I’m not sure. There isn’t a werewolf with such a wide range of transformations in my database.”

– Wow.

Trasha, who had been lying in the corner, seemed to notice that someone was talking about her, so she yawned and scratched her ear.

Blanc said, briefly putting aside the thought that Trasha’s identity was still unknown.

“It’s probably not as unusual as the Tin Man. Anyway, what I want to ask is about Gilan.”

“Merchant? Aha, what happened when you went to the city again?”

“Does this sound familiar?”

“Usually, there is not even a single grain of gold left behind where the author goes. Instead, only sorrow and anger remain.”

Well… you know.

Blanc swallowed the first question he had wanted to ask him, ‘Do you know about Gilan?’ and brought up the next question.

“Then, as someone who has been with him for a while, you didn’t have any thoughts when you watched his actions?”

“Should I listen?”

“Uh… I’m not criticizing you, I’m just asking. To be honest, I’m so confused.”

“… … Is there anything confusing? This is unusual.”

The tin man scratched his head.

I decided to quietly swallow my doubts about whether the Tin Man needed such a move.

“Is that a question like, ‘Do you still want to hang out with that merchant after seeing that?’ If so, the answer I can come up with is ‘yes.’

It’s definitely not a very pretty sight. It makes you wonder if this bastard has no conscience, or if he has a heart of gold, and it’s also a reason why you shouldn’t let your guard down against him.

But you see, you peculiar organism, I don’t hang out with you because I want to be close to you. We’re cooperating to achieve our mutual goals.”

The tin man leaned toward Blanc.

The sound of a creaking chair followed.

“Do you know? Actually, one of the reasons I came to you now was to warn you not to trust merchants too much. There have been more than a few people who were fooled by the appearance of being kind and ended up getting hurt.

He settled me in a nearby town where he had no intention of sucking my business, on the condition that I would hire him as a mercenary and guide, and he helped me find love.

So I thought I was grateful, but that was it. It was clear that the merchant helped me out of good intentions and not for profit.

Every relationship you have with him is a kind of transaction. You shouldn’t expect anything more or less than that.

“If we can make that point clear, then I think there is no better collaborator than him.”

It was a cold but accurate answer.

A cooperative relationship that is formed solely for one’s own benefit, without relying on ambiguous judgments such as good and evil.

There is no reason for ambiguous standards like good and evil to interfere with that relationship.

‘I guess I can’t figure out Nicola’s disposition with this question. Well, it’s a strange story that the tin man is talking about good and evil.’

“Then that’s the end of my questions. Honestly, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious about the story of the woman you fell in love with… … .”

“Oh? If you want, I can talk for six hours?”

“I thought so.”

Blanc smiled bitterly and shook his head.

I didn’t want to hear other people’s love stories when I knew that Annelie wasn’t in good condition.

In the past, I would have listened with shining eyes… … .

“Let’s get to the point. What did you want to tell me, Tin Man?”

“… … .”

Instead of speaking straight away, the Tin Man hesitated for a moment and then pointed to himself.

“Probably starting tomorrow, you’ll be dealing with a lot of tin men like me.”

“Ahem… Hmm? Wasn’t it possible to stop their hostilities with the power of an artifact called the Key Card?”

“Most of them. But as I said before, there may be dolls from other areas patrolling the area… and there may be other cases.”

“For example?”

“A tin man like me.”

While Blanc hesitated for a moment, not understanding what he was saying, it was Ella who answered with a surprised look.

“There could be a broken entity like you?”

“It’s broken, La… It’s unpleasant, but it’s not wrong. Yes. There are definitely tin men who have egos and escaped the defensive command circuits for whatever reason. So they won’t listen to the key card restraints.”

“Aha. So your request is to save them without destroying them while fighting them? To give them human bodies at the center of the facility-”

“no.”

The tin man spoke calmly.

“I want you to destroy them all. No matter what they say in their broken mechanical voices, not a single one of them will be spared.”

“… …Why?”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you that. I don’t know. But… I know that I have to.”

Blanc and Ella looked at each other with bewildered eyes.

“Do you know what you are asking for? If they are truly broken as you say, then wouldn’t there be some among them who have hearts like yours?”

“You’re saying that you want to destroy something, but in reality, you’re asking me to kill a person for no reason. Our knights don’t accept such requests. Even if you tried, they’d kick you out. Annelie, and me.”

“… … I guess so. Then you guys should handle the broken doll as you see fit.”

As Nicola passed the story on without much regret, Blanc could guess his intentions.

That was more of an advice and declaration than a suggestion just now.

Advice that there are dolls inside the facility that are broken for some reason… so broken that Blanc is at a loss as to what to do with them.

And it is Blanc’s freedom to do whatever with them, but if Nicolas has a choice, he declares that he will destroy them all without hesitation…

“… … My head is already starting to hurt. Why is it that everything I encounter in the East is like this?”

“Mystery and fantasy are fascinating when told in stories, but they are a real nuisance when seen alive and breathing before your eyes. Welcome to the land of magic, organism.”

“What’s good… Honestly, I can’t really tell from your words, so let’s continue talking about the broken doll after I see it in person.”

Blanc sighed deeply and continued.

“But I have a feeling you haven’t even brought up the real offer yet… Am I right?”

“oh?”

“No, I think he was intentionally trying to make you reject me by bringing up a difficult topic and then making a real offer. If that wasn’t the case, I would apologize… … .”

“No need for that. That’s right. It’s a technique that merchants often use, and it’s quite effective, so I tried it. You’re quite quick-witted, Yu-gi.”

If Annely had been there, she would have been looking at him with half a heart moved by Blanc’s growth and half a heart regretting that Blanc was leaving her arms.

“You don’t have to be so nervous. The introduction was long, but if you look at the content, it’s actually a simple request.”

“what?”

“Among the ‘broken dolls’ I mentioned earlier, there is one special one. Although it looks the same as other dolls, it is much more agile and strong. You can tell just by looking at it. If you meet that guy… Please leave it to me.”

Nicola said, his eyes glowing red.

Due to the nature of the Tin Man, he was unable to express his emotions in a vocal manner.

Because of that, the voice was as flat and monotonous as before, like a metallic sound… … .

“Because I’m going to kill you.”

Even though the voice was different, I could tell the endless hatred contained within.