The elven maiden, Lady Estra, waited patiently for the nameless goblin to introduce himself. Master Chaplin had a fused look on his face, the question had never occurred to him before. It was a pletely fn cept for him to have a versation with a goblin.

  This elf really is crazy. Goblin’s don’t have names, haha. What use would they have for ohey don’t even have friends of their own kind. At best, they get called ‘chief’ or something equally creative. But I guess I’ll have to think of something fitting foblin off the top of my head...

  “This is… Murkuk, Murkuk Bangstick. I am Dihertongue. Pleasure to make your acquaintance,” Dink introduced himself and the goblin mage, his hand though the cage.

  Master Chaplin stared at the hand in horror. Di a tingliion on the nape of his neck, causing him to retract his hand with an apologetic smile. The elven maiden stood with arms crossed below her chest, highlightitractive cleavage.

  “My name is Lady Estra of House Stormborne,” Estra introduced herself.

  “House Stormborne! Why do you only have silver earrings? Who are y to fool? They’re a fifth-tier golden house on the same footing as the high-elven Royal House!” Dink outburst with shod disbelief.

  Lady Estra appeared taken aback by his intimate knowledge of elven houses. She frowned in thought before answering his questions.

  “If you know about House Stormborhen you should also know that high nobility in high-elven society requires a kingdom of their own. The Royal House Hydra doesn’t rule above the olden ranked Houses. They have their own separate kingdom and vassal houses. Their title es out of respect for their draic bloodline,” Lady Estra expined.

  “Yes, I’m aware of that. But that doesn’t expin why you’re masquerading as a member of House Stormbourne. Unless… That expins the closed pierg holes in your ear,” Dink observed.

  “H-How you see those? House Stormbourne is no lolden rahe expanding wood has almost entirely encroached into our nd. We have been forced into taking asylum with the humans, here iion of Hatral. Our only other option would be to bee a vassal of anolden house,” Lady Estra said with a trembling voice filled with despair.

  “So what do you want with my associate and me?” Dink asked.

  “I found refereo an a ritual that was successful iing and trolling ented forests in the Are Academy library. It was from long before the expanding woods came ience, but it’s the only hope for my House,” Lady Estra said.

  “Let me guess, it requires an elven maid of pure virtue to be sacrificed under a full moon?” Dink muttered.

  “No, it does require an elven maiden to bee the heart of the ented forest. But I won’t o be sacrificed. It requires a different kind of sacrifice from me,” Lady Estra said as she averted her eyes with a blush.

  “A virgin,” Dink simply stated.

  Lady Estra jolted like she had been hit by lightning after hearing Dink’s observation. She pressed her lips into a tight line while remaining silent.

  “Two goblins aren’t going to be very helpful in that regard, I’m afraid. Your st is intoxig. Murkuk here isn’t an issue sidering his unfortunate circumstances. But I’m likely to be overe with lust and ravage you inside a calm clearing amid the trees of the expanding woods,” Dink simply stated.

  Master Chaplin looked to be in agreement with Dink’s predi. He wisely remained silent as Lady Estra crified her iions. She looked slightly worried about the prospect of the goblin’s words.

  “It’s a risk I must take. Only the monster races safely navigate the expanding woods. If too many people ehe forest will react violently. That’s the reason my father couldn’t send his army to ese. I vinced him that this quest is the only hope for our House to recover. Those attuned warriors you killed were bound by an are tract, I have it with me. If you both sign it, there will be no need for ,” Lady Estra said as she walked toward a worher backpaestled behind the desk

  She ruffled through the tents to retrieve a bound scroll. She pced it on the desk and unfurled it while giving it a quick read to firm the terms. She walked to the transport cart uhe stunned gaze of Master Chaplin. He wasn’t shocked by her as of approag the cage. Are tracts are extremely expeo the point that they make even mana tattoos look cheap. They’re used only by the most wealthy merts and nobility.

  It seems that her father isn’t taking any ces with his daughter’s safety. An are tract is basically a mana sve colr. Except a colred sve escape the magitrol by removing the colr. Those attuned must have been paid handsomely to accept such a binding in the first pce.

  An are tract has one fw, the tract holder is the person with the greatest mana reserves. That expins why the attuned were so much weaker than I’d expect to serve a golden ranked House that clearly still has its foundation of wealth, even if it lost its kingdom. The attuned o be weaker than a journeyman mage.

  “What do I get out of this?” Dink suddenly asked. Lady Estra became stunned by the question.

  “What do you mean?” Lady Estra replied.

  “If I’m going to be a sve. I expect to be pensated for it,” Dink answered.

  “B-but aren’t you already a sve? You belong to me,” Lady Estra said with a shaky voice.

  “I’m a sve in name only. I still currently have the option of revolt. That will truly make me a sve by binding my will. Fuck it, I feel partly responsible for your House losing their kingdom. Give it to me,” Dink said. Lady Estra looked fused by his words while he used the distra to snatch the scroll from her grasp.

  Master Chaplin was briefly ed at the mention of revolt despite Dink being ihe cage. He had been looking for the exits. His shoulders sank with relief as he heavily sighed. Lady Estra nervously watched in silent anticipation as Dink bit into the web of his hand. Blood welled out of the wound as he hesitated. He shoved the scroll toward Murkuk.

  “You first. Put your blood on the scroll,” Dink anded.

  “Yes, Chieftain,” Murkuk replied as he obediently copied Dink’s earlier a of biting into his palm, pg it on the tract.

  Mana shimmered through the scroll as the tingliion on the back of Dink’s neck became unbearable. It was the rgest amount of mana he had ever felt activated inside an arena plex. Pale light illumihe transport cart, spreading into Murkuk’s hand and closing the wound. Dink couldn’t resist the ity longer and began to scratch furiously. A momehe binding was plete.

  “Ugh, gobliions are so… repulsive. It’s a mixture of hate, lust, anger, and fear. What does a creature have to gh to feel that?” Lady Estra excimed.

  “You would feel the same if you were unwillingly mutited to be able to el mana. My turn. Give me the scroll,” Dink replied as he snatched the scroll from Murkuk’s hands.

  He examihe scroll in his hands, written in the are nguage. He could read it, of course. The are nguage was created by humans to allow them to utilise mana. It was the key to races outside of elves to gain magic. It was sidered the greatest achievement of mankind by many. Dihe tract terms. He already knew what it said, they were always the same. The magic would fail otherwise.

  The reason he had Murkuk go first was because of a problem with the first tracts created backfiring. They have improved sihen. That was from around the time that Dink was still the Sword Saint, expining his suspi. The first tracts were the in of the beastfolk races. When attempting to bind mundane animals, the magic became chaotid merged the geics of the pair. They both would bee a mixture of humanoid a, creating the beastfolk species as a whole. Some mages who would iionally form failed tracts to take on an animal’s traits to bee beastfolk. It was an act that was sidered taboo.

  The tract backfiring was an unreasonable fear, but Dink was looking for any excuse not to accept the tract. He let out a deep sigh before pg his bloody palm on the tract.