Green Monster Epic

In the city lord's mansion, a detached castle within Namer Fortress, all the servants had been dismissed, leaving only Alan and Facardo.

"I'm giving you a task."

Alan's tone was very serious, making the middle-aged hobgoblin Facardo, standing before Alan, unable to help but feel nervous, losing all resemblance of the imposing city lord he projected before others.

"Chieftain, just give your orders."

"I want you to thoroughly examine everyone living in the fortress and ferret out the cockroaches hidden within. For so long, the tribe hasn't made any major moves, so there must be spies from other forces planted inside."

"We'll use the results of this grand competition to show off our strength to those restless neighbors around us and give them a good warning."

"Can you do it?"

"I guarantee I'll complete the task!"

Facardo responded firmly.

"I received intelligence from outside that other forces have already planted pawns within the mid-to-high-level leaders of our tribe. You must find these guys for me!! My tribe will never allow such parasites that could harm the tribe's interests to exist, nor will it allow such fellows without any kinship to enjoy the tribe's benefits."

"Remember, start the investigation with the goblins who came from Thornsburg."

Alan exuded a heavy killing intent, and Facardo instinctively knew that this matter was extremely important to the chieftain. Therefore, he listened to Alan's instructions with extra care and attention. When he heard Alan say that this group of spies had actually penetrated into the mid-to-high levels of the tribe, he finally understood why the chieftain had such a strong murderous aura.

"Understood!!"

"\n... Wait!!"

"If you really find these guys, don't rush to arrest them. I want to see what these fellows behind them are up to."

"Yes!!"

After Alan finished speaking, he turned and left the city lord's castle, leaving Facardo alone, standing still in the study, pondering deeply.

Facardo was thinking about who to entrust with this matter and also searching through his memories, trying to find clues and see who among his subordinates was the most suspicious. He didn't think that what the chieftain said was alarmist, and he had never questioned the credibility of what the chieftain said.

"Tris's family doesn't seem to have much connection with the goblins redeemed and relocated from Thornsburg. He should be trustworthy."

"No!! The chieftain takes this matter very seriously. I must handle this matter perfectly!!"

"Black Mogg!!"

"Here!!"

A hobgoblin wearing a tight-fitting gray-brown leather armor walked in, habitually standing in a dark corner of the study, quietly waiting for Facardo's orders.

"Help me investigate Commander Tris, check who he has been in contact with privately, check his movements in the past month, and his personal assets."

"I need to know all the information about Commander Tris."

Although Facardo still trusted his confidant Tris, Chieftain Alan's attitude this time was very serious and carried some killing intent. Therefore, to ensure nothing went wrong, Facardo still felt it was necessary to start the investigation with the supervisor he was preparing to entrust with the task. This way, he could control any potential problems from the source.

"Understood."

"Also, the other commanders, send your most trusted subordinates to watch them. Record any subtle things they do in their daily lives."

"Yes!"

Black Mogg didn't ask for the reason. Facardo had promoted him from the bottom, and he had been greatly valued and cultivated by Facardo over the years, which is how he achieved his current strength as a high-level peak Shadow Walker. And Black Mogg's family, as Black Mogg was promoted by Facardo to be his personal guard, was now properly settled, and their lives had taken a qualitative leap.

Whether out of gratitude or the relationship between superiors and subordinates, Black Mogg would strictly carry out Facardo's orders and would not raise any questions.

After Black Mogg's figure slowly disappeared into the study, Facardo's brow remained furrowed. Having been in charge of Namer Fortress for more than ten years, although he hadn't paid much attention to the ghostly activities in the dark corners of the city, Facardo was still very clear that there must be tentacles of other forces inside.

Especially in recent years, the connection between Namer Fortress and Nasir Fortress has become increasingly close. Many trolls and gnolls from the northern city have appeared in large numbers in Namer Fortress to work. It wouldn't be too easy to insert some spies among these guys.

As the three tribes from the two fortresses, separated by a gorge only a few dozen miles deep, established an independent tax department, the troll Arier and the gnoll Maggot-Eye eventually took the initiative to propose to Alan to jointly operate the chamber of commerce because they were envious of the lucrative profits of the Green Field Tribe's major monopoly businesses.

It was obvious that this was a disadvantageous thing for the Green Field Tribe, but Facardo never thought that the always shrewd old chieftain would agree to the other party's request. The final result was that the Green Field Tribe lost at least tens of thousands of gold coins in profits each year because of cooperating with the other two tribes to operate the chamber of commerce.

At the same time, close commercial ties also brought frequent exchanges between the lower-level people of the three tribes.

The living environment of the mid-to-lower-level people of the Green Field Tribe was much better than that of the lower-level people of the Slomi and Raven's Claw tribes. More job opportunities, better living environment, and higher wages, etc., made the lower-level people of the two northern tribes flock to the Green Field Tribe's Namer Fortress to make a living. Some trolls and gnolls even ran thousands of miles to work in Green Lake Town.

With frequent exchanges between the three tribes, the commercial nature of Namer Fortress itself, coupled with the development of the Catoer Mountains due to the opening of the Green Nasir Trade Route, attracted a large number of adventurers to travel back and forth. It was really easy to hide all kinds of sordid and dark deeds.

These factors were all problems that Facardo felt were tricky. The difficulty of peeling off those spies hidden in the tribe from this complex web of relationships was conceivable.

At this time, Facardo was a little envious of Tarick in the west. This guy would definitely receive this task as well, but the environment and situation in Green Lake Town made it much easier for Tarick to complete this task than for himself!!

The hobgoblin Tris had been feeling a little strange during this time, as if there was always a pair of eyes staring at him from behind, but he had tried all kinds of methods repeatedly, but he couldn't find any trace. In the end, he could only think that there was something wrong with his intuition.

But on second thought, Tris felt he was being overly sensitive. Although Nall Fortress was now a mixed bag, it was far safer than ever before. Apart from the insidious Drow, no one in the Northern Territory dared to harbor ill intentions towards them. After all, provoking the Green Field Tribe now was likely to incur the wrath of both the Snow Remnant and Raven's Claw tribes, as the interests of these three powerful tribes were now firmly intertwined.

"Lord, you were looking for me?"

Arriving at the lord's manor, the middle-aged, balding, and somewhat plump Facardo was sitting at the ironwood table, eating breakfast while meticulously reviewing a rather thick document.

"Yes, sit down."

Hearing the voice, Facardo looked up at Tris, his eyes filled with complex emotions, making Tris feel uneasy.

"Have you had breakfast? If not, have some with me?"

"I've already eaten."

"Good, then wait for me a moment. I'll finish soon."

"I heard you've been frequenting the gambling dens lately. Have you struck it rich?"

Wiping his mouth, Facardo casually mentioned this, his narrowed eyes glancing at Tris out of the corner of his eye.

"Ah, nothing of the sort. I just happened to be passing by and went in for a quick look."

Tris's heart skipped a beat, his mind racing. "Lord, as you know, my house is right next to the entertainment district. I have to pass by it on my way to and from work."

"Hmph!!!"

"Still dare to argue with me!!!"

With a crisp sound, the document slammed onto the table, and Facardo's pupils were filled with anger as he looked up again.

"Look at this yourself!! In just one month, you've been to the gambling den 11 times, losing a total of 131 gold coins and dozens of silver coins!!"

"I just want to know, when did our Green Field Tribe's salary become so generous that a supervisor can spend money so lavishly!!"

"Lord, I was wrong!!!"

Tris was covered in sweat, immediately kneeling on the ground in fright. He never expected Facardo to send someone to investigate him. He himself didn't even know how many times he had entered and left the gambling den this month, or how much money he had lost, but now it was coming out of Facardo's mouth. Tris knew that arguing was useless.

"Those were all my dividends from a trade caravan. I definitely didn't embezzle any of the tribe's assets. These dividends were forced upon me by the Drow caravan's supervisor. They wouldn't take no for an answer!!"

"Hmph!! Dividends!! Why would they give you dividends?? Do you think I'm a fool??"

Facardo had always trusted Tris, but he didn't know until he investigated that Tris had been doing a lot of bad things in secret, which greatly disappointed Facardo.

However, the only good news was that although Tris's hands weren't clean, he at least knew where the tribe's rules and bottom lines were.

Black Mogg had been monitoring Tris for an entire month and had traced his actions and deeds back three months, confirming that Tris had only provided some convenience to a few trade caravans by facilitating the rental portals in Nall Fortress. There were no further mistakes, so Facardo allowed the fellow to kneel before him now.

Even though these matters didn't harm the tribe or affect his control over the fortress, Facardo still intended to take this opportunity to severely reprimand and scare the fellow to make him restrain himself.

"Lord!! I won't dare anymore. I'll return those dividends when I get back, and I won't facilitate them anymore!!"

"Really, Lord, please forgive me this once!!"

Truth be told, the tribe had captured many fellows who had embezzled tribal assets in the past decade, and their fates were never good. Now that his own weakness had been exposed, his life and death were at Facardo's word, so Tris couldn't help but beg for mercy repeatedly.

At this moment, Tris also began to regret it. If he hadn't been blinded by the glittering gold coins and his head hadn't been turned, he wouldn't be so terrified now. The future of his entire family and his own future were about to be ruined by this sudden investigation by the lord.

"Forgive you!! Tell me, how much money have you received from those fellows over the years?"

Facardo was resentful in his heart. His trusted confidant, whom he had always valued, turned out to be such a thing, which couldn't help but make him feel frustrated and vent this frustration on the earth goblin kneeling on the ground and constantly kowtowing before him.

"Actually, I only started doing these things five years ago. I really didn't receive much money, Lord."

Since Facardo had already found out about his problems, Tris didn't dare to take any chances. Even if he hid his past, it wouldn't have much impact on the outcome. It would be better to take the initiative to confess clearly, which might still salvage his image in Facardo's heart.

At least, Tris believed that he was very loyal to Facardo, and Facardo did trust him very much. Facardo entrusted many shady matters that couldn't be brought to the table to Tris.

"And those dividends, most of them are stored at my home. I'm willing to hand them all over…"

"Hmph, you bastard, what can I say about you!!"

"Get up now!!"

Facardo just wanted to reprimand this confidant and make him rein himself in. He still needed this fellow to handle matters for him now!!

"As for surrendering anything, forget it. But from today onwards, cut off all those things that should be cut off, and don't let me find out that there's a next time!!"

"Yes, yes!! Definitely!! Thank you, Lord! Thank you, Lord!!"

Tris's entire back was soaked with sweat, and drops of sweat formed puddles on the ground. Hearing Facardo's scolding at this moment, his frantically beating heart finally slowed down. It seemed that years of flattery and bootlicking had made Facardo reluctant to kill him.

Facardo didn't confiscate the money that Tris had scraped together because he knew very well what the most important thing was right now. His subordinate was capable and not lacking in methods. The only bad thing was perhaps that his hands were too big, and he cared too much about face, with his personal expenses being a bit alarming.

Leaving him this money would ensure that he had no worries when he went to investigate spies next. Now that he had let him off the hook, Tris would naturally be even more grateful and loyal to him.

"Alright, let's talk about serious matters."

"There's a reason for investigating you this time. The chieftain has given me a very important task. He wants me to find all the spies from external forces lurking in our fortress, especially those who have infiltrated our tribe's management team!!"

"…"