Chapter 36 Noble Demoness Lady Zylithia

With remarkable composure, the catpeople approached the distressed goblins, their soothing voices and calming gestures working wonders to quell the chaos that had ensued. They promised the panicked goblins refuge from the approaching storm, their words a beacon of hope amidst the tension of the weather.

I watched in amazement as the goblins, initially bewildered by this unexpected turn of events, began to trust the catpeople's assurance. They followed the feline-humanoid figures with a newfound sense of security, their once-frantic movements now replaced by a sense of purpose and direction.

At that moment, I realized that Luminecia was a place where the extraordinary was commonplace, where the lines between the mundane and the fantastical were blurred. The catpeople's swift response and their incredible ability to transform from domestic felines into humanoid beings highlighted the remarkable diversity and uniqueness of the world I had found myself in.

As I gazed at the ominous storm clouds looming in the distance, a sense of urgency washed over me. I turned to Goblinworth, who was indulging in his culinary adventure with fervor, and urged him to consider ending our day of town exploration prematurely to avoid getting caught in the impending rainstorm. Even the food stall owner, recognizing the imminent downpour, had decided to close up shop early.

Goblinworth, his face adorned with food crumbs and glistening with grease, met my suggestion with a momentarily demented expression. Scratching his head, he replied in a flurry of goblin-like enthusiasm, "Um, ugh, ah, yes! We should be going, but before we depart, I find myself positively parched! A drink, a drink! Vendor! Please, a hearty helping of your delicious kvass!"

The food stall owner swiftly grabbed a large glass and filled it to the brim with kvass. He handed it over to the goblin, who accepted it with sheer delight. With a jaw-stretching yawn, Goblinworth opened his mouth as wide as it could go and poured the kvass directly onto his face, swallowing it down in sizable gulps. This drinking performance resulted in a spectacle of gagging and splattering, with kvass cascading haphazardly in all directions.

Upon completing his impromptu kvass-drinking exhibition, Goblinworth let out a triumphant belch that echoed through the street. He wiped a few errant food particles with the back of his hand and declared, "Now that I've quenched my thirst, Master Kazuki, we can indeed depart. My goblin belly is content, for the time being. Mmm, yummy food!"

The food stall owner chimed in, mirroring my sense of urgency.

 "Best be on your way, friends! The storm's approachin' faster than a hungry goblin to a feast! This one will be grand!"

As the rain started to pour down, our once-promising adventure was abruptly derailed and we reluctantly began our journey back to the mansion. Along the way, we encountered a flurry of goblins, each caught up in a self-inflicted crisis, their frantic voices filling the air with distress. Their peculiar mishaps painted a chaotic scene.

One goblin was wedged tightly in a cracked wall, his panicked screams echoing through the streets. He seemed to have attempted to squeeze into the crevice with disastrous results.

"Gah! Stuck! Stuck in here! Help! Help! It's dark and wet! It's cold! Make it stop! Help! Get me out of here! I swear, this crack looked wider from a distance! I knew it was a bad idea! I should have looked for a hole, not a crack!"

Another goblin was trapped within the rain drainage pipe, his scrawny legs wildly flailing from the holes, a testament to his futile efforts to free himself.

"My legs! They won't come out! Someone, please! No! Wait! My body is stuck, and my legs are free! Help! Someone, please, lend me a hand or a leg, I'll take anything! I'm drowning in here! I can't...breathe..."

A third goblin lay pinned beneath a heap of planks, his ill-fated attempt at constructing a shelter ending in his own entrapment.

"Stupid plank, get off me! Why did I think planks could save me? Oh no, oh no! Gah! Help! Somebody! This shelter idea was terrible. I knew I should've stuck to simple tasks like digging a bunker!"

Further down the rain-slicked streets, we encountered a goblin trembling in abject fear. He sought refuge beneath a small cart, his ears wrapped around his quivering body in a feeble attempt to console himself. He was in distress as he rocked back and forth, murmuring to himself in a desperate bid to find solace.

"It's so wet, so cold! Make it stop, make it stop! Why did I come out today? I should've stayed under the bed! Or in the scary basement! Or maybe in the pantry! No, not the pantry, that's where the scary shadows live! It's raining disaster out there! I'm hiding from the rain, from the wet, from everything! Somebody, anybody, make it all go away! "

The dire situation became all too apparent as we hurried through the street. My heart sank when I spotted a lifeless goblin lying flat in a large puddle of water, a tragic victim of the relentless rain.

A child goblin, no taller than a toadstool, stood before a puddle of rainwater as though it were an insurmountable chasm. His scrawny arms flailed wildly in an attempt to leap over it, but he never quite managed to clear the water's edge.

 "It's a water trap! A watery abyss of doom! I can't cross it, I'm too short! Help me, please! My heroic leap has turned into a soggy mess!"

As we hurriedly ran past the panicking goblins, I expressed my concern to Goblinworth.

 "Shouldn't we stop and help them? They look like they need a helping hand."

Goblinworth, with a giggle that seemed to cut through the storm's chaos, reassured me, "Oh Master Kazuki, you don't need to worry about us goblins. A little rain will not harm us."

However, I remained adamant, "But I saw one goblin just lying in the puddle face down. I think he's dead."

Goblinworth chuckled again and, with a reasoning that only a goblin could muster, said, "Oh, don't you worry, he was just resting. A little rain pitter-patter will not harm us goblins, a big wooden club to the head on the other hand would. Oh... how many I have taken wooden clubs to the head, I can't even remember the count."

The rainstorm had turned our journey back to the mansion into an epic odyssey that spanned hours. We huddled in small shelters, dashed between rooftops, and huddled beneath overhangs whenever we dared to brave the relentless downpour. As we observed the other residents of the town navigating the rain, it was clear that only the goblins had yet to master the fine art of seeking refuge.

Goblins, it seemed, lacked the basic instinct to simply stroll beneath a nearby rooftop to evade the rain. Instead, they floundered and flailed on the slick cobblestone streets, dashing around in a frenzied panic that would have rivaled the antics of four-year-olds in a candy store.

While we stood under our meager shelter, I couldn't help but survey the scene. Humans had gathered in chatty groups, their umbrellas creating a colorful mosaic overhead. Lizardmen, on the other hand, strolled through the rain as if it were a gentle sun shower, unaffected by the drenching. Catpeople had sought refuge in high, dry nooks, where they luxuriously sprawled out and reveled in the soothing rhythm of the rainfall.

The melodious pattering of the rain was a mesmerizing serenade to Goblinworth. His plump belly, now content with the scrumptious meal, seemed to conspire with the gentle rhythm of the raindrops to lure him into the embrace of slumber.

The aroma of the freshly devoured delicacies lingered in the air like an enchantment, and Goblinworth's tired body could no longer resist the call for rest. It tugged at him, relentlessly and persuasively, until the goblin could no longer resist its charms.

His lively chatter dwindled into incoherent mumblings, a series of nonsensical syllables and phrases that danced on his lips. His eyelids fluttered as if engaged in a delicate ballet, barely opening to reveal glimpses of his dreamy gaze.

"Zibbly-zobbly, wibbly-wobbly! Goblins dance, dance, tra-la-la! Tickle-tackle the moon, snicker-snack, zoom-zoom! Wobble-wobble! Gobble the goblin grub, chomp-chomp, yum-yum!"

Goblinworth's scrawny form swayed from side to side, as if trying to dance its way into slumber. It was as if he were caught in a whimsical, rain-induced trance.

Ultimately, Goblinworth surrendered to the lullaby of the rain. With a drowsy sigh and a thoroughly satisfied smile, he leaned against the wall and succumbed to the sweet embrace of sleep.

But then, my gaze was abruptly stolen by a vision of breathtaking beauty. She walked with an elegant allure, her Lavender-hued skin radiating an otherworldly charm. Her eyes were deep black with fiery red pupils, and gracefully curved horns adorned her forehead.

The outfit she wore suggested a formidable warrior, and a colossal sword strapped to her back only accentuated her imposing presence. She navigated the street with an umbrella in hand, an embodiment of grace and allure.

In the midst of this spectacle, a goblin scurried toward her like a drowning rat, clinging to her partially exposed leg in a desperate plea. He begged her for shelter from the relentless rain, his tiny green hands reaching out in a plea for compassion. The raindrops, seemingly sympathetic to his plight, had drenched him to the bone.

The look of disgust that contorted her face was unmistakable as she ruthlessly kicked the goblin away, sending him sliding across the wet cobblestones and crashing into a heap of nearby boxes. She berated the goblin with scathing words, clearly unhappy with the audacity of his touch.

"You, a lowly creature of the shadows, dare to lay your wretched hands upon me? Know your place, you insignificant pest! How dare you defile my personal space with your grubby hands? Have you no understanding of boundaries, no sense of propriety?"

As the goblin clambered to his feet, he unleashed a torrent of frantic gibberish, his words a manic symphony of alarm and bewilderment.

 "Oh, woe! Woe unto us, fellow goblins! The wrath of Demon! The towering one descends upon us! A calamity most foul! Run for your lives! Flee, flee for the sanctity of your meager existences! Reeee!"

Other goblins, equally frenzied and frantic, responded in kind, their high-pitched voices carrying an air of impending doom.

 "Aieeee! The giants of doom approach! Save yourselves! Scatter, scatter like leaves in the tempest! The end is nigh!"

Their shrill cries echoed through the street, inciting chaos as goblins darted in every direction, their tiny feet a blur of movement as they scuttled to refuge from the imagined threat. 

Meanwhile, Goblinworth had seemingly succumbed to slumber while standing beside me amidst this chaotic spectacle. With a gentle nudge, I roused him from his whimsical dreams, and he stirred in confusion, his sleep-addled mind emitting a bewildered mumble.

"Mmm... carnival? Oh, what a delightful dream that was... joy... fun... food! Mmmm... food." 

Goblinworth's eyes fluttered open, resembling two orbs of goblin curiosity that had just been illuminated. He blinked several times as if emerging from the depths of a particularly enchanting dream.

 I pointed discreetly at the lady, who was now meticulously cleaning her elegant thigh, her expression still marred by the goblin's unfortunate embrace.

Goblinworth, now fully awake, responded with animated enthusiasm, "Ah, Master Kazuki! Oh, ho! She, she's the tall demon lady, she is, she is! That, right there, is Lady Zylithia, a noble demoness of unparalleled elegance and grace! She's one of them demon folks, yes, she is! She hails from the Abyssal Realms, a place where flames dance and shadows whisper. She is one of the council members in charge of Demon folks!"