The Forest Feeds No Idle Goblins

Chapter 278: Chapter 251: Are You Ready?

"Is that the Teleportation Array you used to bring me here?" Uncle Musa asked with a frown. Although he had never truly experienced the teleportation devices boasted about by the Great Nobles, he had heard of them. He had been genuinely shocked when Shire had used a Teleportation Gate to travel into the forest earlier, but that shock was quickly replaced by other things.

From the moment he entered the underground Fortress to the second he saw that crate of Beast Cores, Uncle Musa’s mind had been swinging back and forth. One moment he would be thinking, ’What is this? How is this possible?’ and the next, ’Hearing the Young Master explain it, it almost makes sense.’

Now that Shire had brought up Teleportation Gates again, a new thought occurred to him. ’What’s the big deal about a Teleportation Gate? Of course my Young Master deserves to have one!’

But the old rumors he’d heard made him a bit more cautious. "Young Master, if this sort of thing is a hassle to acquire, I can figure something else out."

Shire looked at the old man before him, knowing what he wasn’t saying. Uncle Musa was just gently expressing that if the Teleportation Gates were difficult to get, they should forget about it. After all, the resources would be better spent here.

A sudden warmth spread through his heart, like someone wrapping a thick, warm blanket around his shoulders against a cold winter wind.

"No, Uncle," Shire said softly, trying hard to keep his voice steady. He didn’t want to show too much emotion right now; after all, they were planning something very important. "It’s quite the opposite. A Teleportation Gate is the least valuable thing I can offer you."

"Least valuable?" Uncle Musa was stunned. That was like someone tossing a gold ingot onto the street and saying, ’What is this garbage? It’s just taking up space at home. Get rid of it.’ "Young Master, I think..."

Shire smiled and waved a hand, cutting him off. "I know what you’re going to say. But you don’t understand—I really can make a lot of these things all at once."

"You can make a lot?" Uncle Musa raised his eyebrows. "Don’t tell me you know a Great Mage?"

"No, it’s not like that," Shire said. "This wasn’t made by some Great Mage. I really built it myself. It’s hard to explain right now, but all you need to know is that I can build many of these Teleportation Arrays. I could even build one that teleports directly from here to Plantagenet City."

"You can really make that many?" Musa and Shire sat back down in their chairs. Musa once again stroked the beard on his cheek with the back of his hand, mulling over what the Young Master had said.

Shire watched the pensive Captain of the Guard, wondering what he was thinking. What Shire had said was true, though. He’d already used those Teleportation Gates to let Philip play ’bungee jumping’—only without the cord.

After a few seconds, Uncle Musa voiced his idea. "If you can build several of these Teleportation Gates, I wonder... could we place them in advance at important strongholds or major transportation hubs throughout the Fran Kingdom?"

"At various strongholds? Placed in advance?" Shire was stunned. He hadn’t expected Uncle Musa to come up with such a plan.

"Yes. If it’s feasible, we just need to set up the anchor points in highly concealed locations. Then, whenever we need to deploy troops to those places in the future, the results will be... unexpected." Uncle Musa nodded firmly, his eyes locked on Shire, eagerly awaiting his response.

"Well..." Shire scratched his cheek. "I thought you were going to suggest something more conservative, but now it seems..."

"Perhaps my previous suggestions were a bit conservative, but they were all based on ensuring your and Miss Vivian’s safety. But since you say the Teleportation Gates are so convenient, I think we should build a network across the whole Kingdom ahead of time." Uncle Musa’s eyes narrowed into a cryptic smile. "A network for launching surprise attacks anywhere in the Kingdom."

"And I thought my idea was the radical one," Shire muttered, pursing his lips.

’But now, it seems the conservative has decided the radical is being too cautious.’

"This new type of Teleportation Gate requires us to ship some stone materials over beforehand and find a hidden space, like a basement or a warehouse," Shire reined in his emotions and began to carefully explain how Rune Language: Door worked. "Once it’s set up, it can be activated directly. However, someone needs to be on the other side to operate it for a person to teleport back."

"So, it requires two operators," Uncle Musa quickly grasped his meaning.

"Only one person is needed to teleport objects, though," Shire quickly clarified.

"It’s certainly different from the old Teleportation Gates." Uncle Musa nodded. ’This new type requires dedicated personnel, but it would be incredibly convenient for transporting goods or other things, as long as it’s set up in advance. And most importantly,’ he thought, glancing at the Young Master’s expression, ’it seems this thing is incredibly cheap.’

"When the time comes, you can find a residence in Plantagenet City and renovate it. We just need to disguise the Teleportation Array as a nice-looking stone-tiled floor to avoid suspicion." Seeing that Musa basically understood, Shire continued with his idea. "That way, whenever there’s news, you just have to operate it, and we can exchange messages or supplies through the Teleportation Array."

"Alright. I understand." Uncle Musa nodded emphatically. The final piece of the puzzle had just clicked into place.

He looked at the goblin before him, however, and after a moment of hesitation, he asked again, "Young Master, are you really not going to tell Miss Vivian?"

Shire let out a long sigh and said calmly, "I did intend to find her at first. I wanted to get rid of this green skin and my current appearance as soon as possible. But whenever I think of the mastermind’s smug face, I just feel sick."

"They didn’t just frame the Merlot Clan and kill my father. They put a bounty on me and Vivian, and they cursed me to become a goblin. This isn’t just some simple conspiracy between nobles; it’s the venomous scheme of a truly insidious villain. I can almost picture the bastard hiding in the crowd, watching me with a triumphant look on his face. If I can’t give them a little ’surprise’ of my own, I’ll never be able to stomach this."

’Just like I thought,’ Shire seethed internally. ’There are two kinds of people I hate most in this world: the corrupt, and those who won’t let me be corrupt.’

’Now that some corrupt bastard has decided I don’t get to enjoy my own wonderful, corrupt life, then screw it. Nobody gets to be corrupt. It’s time to get moving.’

’Let’s see what your limits are.’

Shire smiled at Uncle Musa across the table, not saying a word. His gaze said it all.

Uncle Musa let out a slow sigh. "I understand. I’ll start contacting the port tomorrow to prepare for the return to Torch City."

"No, Uncle. You should stay here for a few more days. It will take time to prepare the supplies, after all."