Chương 103: Chapter 101 The Communications Chief

On the fourth day after the expansion project began, Karath stood at Root's main gate instead of supervising the road construction.

"This is Root, the birthplace and capital of the Greenskin Alliance!" He was welcoming new members into the village. Long-distance communication was finally within reach. The visitors had not arrived alone. Karath had personally led Berners and several warriors out to escort them safely to Root. They consisted of another hobgoblin and the goblins who followed him.

"Thanksh, Grand Chief!"

"Thanksh, Grand Chief!" The hobgoblin known as R-One and every goblin bearing the R clan name bowed toward Karath.

"You must have already heard through the horns about the promise Karath made to Berners."

"That ish correct, Grand Chief!"

"That promise applies equally to every goblin! If you offer your lives to the Greenskin Alliance, then we will also risk our lives to protect your clan!"

"We will devote our livesh to the Greenskin Alliance!"

"Krahahaha! That is enough. From today onward, the R clan is part of the Greenskin Alliance." Karath expected R-One to cheer after receiving his answer. Instead, the hobgoblin continued staring at him with a restless expression.

"Is there a problem?"

"G-Grand Chief? Will you not give me a name?"

"A name?"

"I heard from T-One, no, from Bernersh. You granted him a name ash a symbol of your promise..."

"Ah..." Karath felt as though he had dug his own grave. Naming things was already one of the most difficult tasks a programmer could face. At this rate, he would be forced to name a new hobgoblin every time another clan joined the alliance. He suffered through the mental agony of naming for several moments before finally reaching a decision.

"Markup. From today onward, your name shall be Markup." Karath chose the name because Berners had brought him to Root. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. It sounded respectable and even possessed a suitable meaning, at least from Karath's perspective. Markup would probably dislike it if he ever learned the true origin, but this was the limit of Karath's miserable naming sense.

"Through the names granted to the two of you, Karath swears that his promise to all goblins is sincere. From now onward, you and Berners will name any new hobgoblins who join us." He immediately passed the burden to them before he could be forced to endure it again.

"W-we will?"

"That is correct. You were the first hobgoblins to join Root. Karath gives you this responsibility so that you can help every hobgoblin and goblin who arrives after you settle into the alliance."

"Thanksh, Grand Chief!"

"I am moved by your consideration! I swear upon the name Markup, which the Grand Chief bestowed upon me, that I will fulfil thish duty!"

"Good. Once you name a hobgoblin, that hobgoblin can name the members of his own clan." Then they would finally understand how painful naming truly was.

"Lastly, Berners."

"Yes, Grand Chief!"

"You were the first hobgoblin to join us, and you revealed the location of the iron mine. In recognition of those achievements, Karath appoints you as the leader of the hobgoblins." Berners' eyes widened.

"M-me?"

"That is correct." At first, Berners shrank back and fell into thought. Then he appeared to reach a decision.

"I-I will work hard!" His posture remained awkward, but he declared his acceptance with confidence. Karath smiled inwardly. The Greenskin Alliance now possessed a leader responsible for communications. In other words, Berners would represent the hobgoblins and receive more work than any of them. Construction accelerated after Markup joined the alliance. Until then, the workers had focused entirely upon clearing a straight road from Root toward the former Warriorhearts settlement.

However, as the road grew longer, travelling from the village to the construction site consumed more time and delayed progress. To solve that problem, Karath formed an advance party consisting of himself, Orga, eighteen additional orc warriors, and Berners. They travelled to the site of the former Warriorhearts settlement. Approximately two thirds of the road between Root and the abandoned village had already been completed.

The advance party moved quickly along the cleared section, then pushed through the remaining vegetation and arrived around sunset. Their reason for travelling ahead was simple. They needed to prepare a safe place where the road workers could sleep once construction reached the area. More importantly, beginning work from both ends would increase the speed of construction. Karath had wanted to divide the workers this way from the beginning, but distance created a serious communication problem.

While the groups worked separately, monsters could swarm one side without the other group ever learning of the danger. The current road had also grown long enough that travelling from Root to the construction front already required half a day. The orcs working there could no longer receive quick assistance from Root. They were also approaching the point where they would need to camp overnight in the forest. Markup's arrival solved the communication problem.

Beginning the following morning, Karath and Orga directed the reconstruction of the former Warriorhearts settlement. Slightly less than half a year had passed since the tribe abandoned it. Monsters appeared to have crossed through the area during that time, leaving much of the settlement in ruins. That suited Karath perfectly. He had never intended to preserve the old structures.

The monsters had already demolished many outdated earthen houses, scattering stones and boulders throughout the site for the workers to reuse. They stacked the stones around the outer edge of the settlement and constructed a simple defensive wall. After two days of labour, the twenty-one members of the advance party completed a rough stone wall approximately two metres high, enclosing half of the former settlement. That evening, the road construction group finally reached them.

The gathering now consisted of the twenty-one members of the advance party, twenty orc warriors from the road crew, and ten goblins. All fifty-one spent the night inside the temporary wall, taking turns standing guard. The following morning, twenty warriors returned to Root while the remaining thirty continued constructing the waystation. Two days later, the returning warriors arrived again, this time escorting twenty women.

Once they reached the waystation, the warriors and goblins who had remained there resumed work on the road. Six days after road construction restarted, the workers finally reached the entrance of the iron mine.