CHAPTER 130: BIG BIG BRIENDS, AND SMALL SMALL BRIENDS!

Rae cleared his throat, as if what he was about to say was profound enough to echo through history.

"Friends."

"...Excuse me?"

Melissa’s head snapped toward him, her eyebrow climbing like it was trying to escape her forehead.

"What did you say, Rae-kun?"

"I said friends, madame."

He delivered it with the kind of bright, oblivious smile that made him look like a complete idiot—probably on purpose.

Melissa blinked, stared for a moment as if weighing whether he was joking, then tilted her head.

"Umm... Rae-kun, you have friends?"

"Err... Hmpfff."

Rae nearly choked on air. He was flabbergasted by that kind of question. What does she even mean if he has any friends.

Of course he does.

That was exactly why he puffed his cheeks, pouted like some sulking kid, and whipped his head away with dramatic flair.

How could she just throw that at him like he was some lonely, pathetic stray dog. He clearly had one... well, one and a half... okay, fine, many.

His thoughts wandered back to his old world. The number of friends he had there was astonishing—at least, that’s what he wanted to think.

Truth was, who the hell was going to be his friend when he slept through the morning like a vampire and only crawled out to work at night.

And work wasn’t some cushy desk job either. No, it was scraping together money, scavenging whatever he could, and trying not to starve.

Where in that schedule was the time to sit around with buddies, go drinking, or have stupid late-night talks about women and life.

Obviously that was the reason he didn’t have any friends back there. And it sure as hell wasn’t because he had the social skills of a dead goldfish or some depressing crap like that.

No, he was a catch. Just... a catch no one had time to reel in.

Rae skimmed through the old Rae’s memories like flipping through a cheap porno mag someone left out in the rain—blurry, wrinkled, and smelling faintly of regret.

’surely he had many, right? he was from the damn goblin village’

But nope. Obviously, that Rae and this Rae weren’t all that different.

The only thing the old Rae had going for him was the persistence of the bullies breathing down his neck every day like horny dogs sniffing heat.

And when the heroes finally rolled into town swinging swords and acting all high-and-mighty, the old Rae was... apparently happy.

"..."

’I did not know that’

Old Rae was actually happy to work under the same humans who’d slaughtered his kind, burned down his home, and enslaved him.

Why? Because apparently, that counted as "finally living" to him. He even liked working under Alex and Alice. Liked it.

’Man, i did not know that. that’s messed up’

"R-Rae-kun, I didn’t mean to say it like that—"

Rae raised a hand, palm up, halting Melissa mid-sentence like a traffic cop with zero patience. He wasn’t about to let her fill the air with more useless babble.

No, he had a mission here, and it sure as hell wasn’t letting her guilt-trip herself into oblivion.

It was to make damn sure she understood what friends were for.

"No need, Madame."

He shook his head, slow and deliberate, like he was turning down a bad lap dance.

’Time to notch this up a bit’

He was going to escalate this. Crank it right up. Bring out the full, Oscar-worthy performance with extra seasoning. Melissa needed to get it. Not just hear it. Feel it. Cry about it later in bed.

"Rae had..."

"Hmm?" she blinked, already looking uneasy.

"...friends... Long ago, Rae enjoying with pack of briends..."

He turned around slowly, hands tied behind him like some tragic war survivor with a past so dark even candlelight wouldn’t touch it.

And of course, it landed perfectly, Melissa’s face softened, concern blooming in her eyes like she’d just seen a puppy get punted.

"Rae had friends. Big big friends. Small small friends... stupid friends. Smart friends. But all of dhem gone."

He gave a sniff. Not the delicate, polite kind. No, this was the wet, dragging kind that made you want to hand over a napkin and your savings. Melissa’s heart clenched like a fist.

"Rae saw them gone with Rae’s own eyes. Rae neber forget dhem. Dhey gave Rae life, Rae now lives in sad."

Snif. Snif.

His voice cracked like an old floorboard in a cheap brothel.

Then came the full breakdown—hands over his eyes, little goblin body shaking up and down, shoulders trembling, breathing hitching in the rhythm of pure heartbreak.

If there was a jury in the room, they’d be ready to acquit him of murder and give him a warm blanket.

’Now for the kill shot’

He kept snif-snifing, letting the silence drag just long enough for her guilt to start chewing on her like a starved rat. Then he dropped it.

"It was... your heroes."

Her lips parted. No sound came out.

"You shiny, happy, sword-swinging heroes. Dhey came. Dhey laughed. Dhey killed. Big big friends gone. Small small friends gone. Rae hiding in pile of shit just to live."

Melissa’s pupils quivered. She took a step forward.

"But Rae forgave heroes. Rae is good goblin. Rae has big heart. Rae said... okay. Heroes no bad now. Heroes smile at Rae, Rae smile back."

He tilted his head, his voice dropping to a wet whisper.

"But Rae... not forgive friends. Friends gone. Friends no wait for Rae. Friends leave Rae behind like old sock. Rae still in sad."

That did it—Melissa’s arms shot around him like she was wrapping a broken doll. Her soft, human warmth pressed to his small green body.

Rae’s eyes lit up like a thief finding an unlocked vault. He buried his head right between the peaks of her chest, letting out an exaggerated, trembling exhale.

"Ahhh... warm... so warm... like mama’s stew pot."

His little hands patted her back, then somehow slid a bit lower, "comforting" her waist. He sniffed again, louder this time, right against her cleavage.

"Melissa smell like flowers and justice. Rae can heal now. Hug more. More tight. Squeeze Rae’s sadness out."

Melissa tightened her hold, thinking she was helping. Rae’s toes curled. His legs did a little happy kick behind her.

’Oh yeah... this is the good medicine.’

"Rae can feel it," he mumbled, voice muffled in her chest. "Sadness leaking out... and going... somewhere nice..."

His head rubbed slightly side to side like he was just making sure the hug was... symmetrical.

Melissa’s arms were still around him, but her mind was nowhere near the warmth of the hug.

She had been ready to burn her last breath for this mission.

No hesitation, no backup plan. March straight into the Goblin King’s lair, shoot her arrows straight to his heart, and go out in a blaze of glory.

She’d pictured it already—her friends watching her fall, tears in their eyes but relief in their hearts because they’d make it home.

They’d drink wine, tell stories, and live the rest of their lives without having to worry about goblins crawling out of the dark.

That was the deal she’d made with herself.

’At least, i wanted to make sure this shit ended today.’

It has been so long since this thing with the Goblin king has been going on. They didn’t wanted to live in fear.

At least, Melissa didn’t wanted to live in constant fear that he might show up somewhere in a small village and just destroy the whole area.

That was why she wanted to make sure she at least, took out one of them.

Gear was above her, but given the state the Goblin king was when they last met, she had thought, he might be an easy target.

But now... here she was, holding a trembling little goblin whose voice still cracked when he talked about his "big big friends" and "small small friends" that were gone.

And they weren’t just gone because of time or fate. They were gone because of the heroes. Her. And her friends.

Her throat tightened.

She’d been trained to see goblins as numbers, as a mess to be cleaned up. After the failed negotiation with Celeste and others on sparing them from the spell....

Nobody had told her, these creatures could still feel the pain of loss.

That they’d sit there months later, still poking the wound, still blaming the ones who left them behind.

She’d thought she was ready to die fighting the Goblin King. But now she was worried more about her friends.

Her grip on Rae softened, but she didn’t let go.

"Rae..."

She started, but the little bastard was already burrowing further into her chest like she was a pillow with a heartbeat.

"Melissa hug good. Best hug. Rae no want let go."

She almost smiled, then caught herself. This wasn’t the time for weakness. And yet... she didn’t push him away.

Because for the first time since deciding to face the Goblin King, she wasn’t thinking about the fight.

She was thinking about what kind of world Rae would have been living, if they hadn’t shown up to his village?

And that thought... it didn’t feel as simple as it had yesterday.

’Shit... am I hesitating?’ she wondered.

Meanwhile Rae, completely oblivious, or maybe not, gave another dramatic sigh into her cleavage.