"To the south? Back to that place? ”

"Hmm."

"No, no! I will never go! That's hell, that's a slaughterhouse! I managed to get out of there, and I'm not going back! ”

Heading south to return to Garkison was a sure thing, however, in the Allied mountain fortress, Goblin Flevi was reluctant to return to Garkison. It was a swarm of insects, terrible bugs coming in, and Flevy strongly disagreed with Ares' request. He escaped death before he came here to take refuge, and it would be better to kill him if he was allowed to go back.

"Listen, friend, you don't want to die, and neither do I. But like you said, disaster has come, and the number of biters is increasing, exponentially. If we don't investigate the source of the swarm as soon as possible, it won't be long before this castle will be engulfed by countless bugs, becoming the second Gakison. You don't want to go back, and neither do I. But how long do you think we'll live if we don't go back? Besides, don't you want to see if there are any survivors of you in that city? Maybe someone is hiding in a solid bunker, waiting for our rescue? ”

"No, there can't be survivors, those bugs are everywhere, their fangs can bite steel."

Flevi continued to scream. Obviously, three days of rest had not helped him recover. Gakison's situation touched Ares's heart, but the goblins were reluctant to go back...... It's so ruthless that even his own compatriots are unwilling to rescue. How far can you hide...... Ares speculated that some goblins had taken refuge on the Alliance's side, and that some must have fled farther north to seek refuge from the Horde. Saar presumably got news from the south as well.

"Forget it, don't force them, let's go there and investigate the situation ourselves, look at them like this, even if they are forced to return to Garkison, it is estimated that it will not help our investigation work, and it will even drag us down."

Just when Ares was helpless against the group of cowards, Gianna came over and expressed her opinion.

……

A few weeks later, aboard Daelin's battleship Breaking Waves, Ares and Gianna landed on the east coast of Tanaris. It can be seen that the once prosperous wharf has long been empty at the moment, and it is a desolate and solemn scene. Dead goblins lay on the beach, their bodies already decomposed, and so badly decomposed that they could barely see their original faces, and countless flies and maggots crawled on them. This scene reminded Ares of the same tragic situation in the villages and towns ravaged by the Scourge Legion when he was in the Plaguelands of Lordaeron.

As we marched along the docks towards the town, the corpses of the goblins lay on the side of the road, their bodies as if they had been pierced and cut off by some sharp weapon, some of them had their heads separated, some of them had their limbs incomplete, and some of them had been disemboweled, and a large hole had been made in their bellies, which was full of scarlet entrails and blood. Without exception, in the desert heat, the corpses all decomposed, and none of them were spared.

Everyone in the squad frowned, this kind of sight was even more tragic than the orc war. It's no wonder that the goblins don't come back, everything here is like hell, it will evoke nightmares deep in them, and remind them of the scene when the swarm attacked the city.

On the third day, the city of Gakison was finally revealed to Ares and Gianna. However, the Gakison in front of him can no longer be called a city, but a huge tomb, a mass grave, a place where bones are buried...... In the endless ruins, lies the mangled corpse of the Gakison Goblin. These corpses were even more horrific than those on the docks. Almost all of the dead goblins were eviscerated...... It's hard to describe the scene in words......

"It's a miracle that there are still people who voluntarily return here."

Just as Ares stared intently at the terrifying-looking corpses, a familiar shout was heard not far away. Look in the direction the voice came from. Several very short creatures were struggling to walk. No guess, they are goblins, survivors of the city......

The lead goblin appeared to be heavily armed, with a weapon like a firebolt in his hand and a round metal shield on his back. Urban Self-Defense Forces? Ares thought of this at first glance.

"Your compatriots have fled to our castle, and I have heard of the tragic situation here."

"So you're here to investigate and collect evidence, right?"

The goblin leader walked over slowly, a thick cigarette butt in his mouth. After the death of the municipal magistrate Kozmoz, it is clear that there is no real leader in Gakison, and whoever has weapons and soldiers in hand is the leader. Besides, in such a dead city, a place full of dangers, no one wants to live here anymore. The people who come back here either have a special purpose or a sense of home.

"Yes, this catastrophe must be investigated, or it will soon spread to our castle."

Ares got straight to the point.

"Alpine Castle, I know that my people helped you build that fortress. Atwood, it's a pleasure to meet you, paladin. ”

The goblin leader said, spitting out the cigarette in his mouth and holding out his right hand, which was covered in iron armor, in welcome.

"Ares, Ares. Mogrian. This is my fiancée, Gianna. Ms. Prodmoor. ”

With that, Ares ceremoniously shook hands with the goblin ruffian as a sign of alliance.

"You are very direct, friend, you are the first paladin I have ever met who is not hypocritical, not pretentious, I have seen many of your people, they are very hypocritical, they will say that they will fight for Azeroth, for the world, but you are very sincere, very natural and realistic, in order not to let the disaster spread to your land. Yes, I have to say, this is the cause and source of motivation for everything we do. For our wealth and for our families. ”

Walking in an abandoned city with the goblin arms dealer Atwood, the goblin leader chattered along the way, I don't know whether he was deliberately boasting about the pat or just chatting from the heart, in short, he seemed to have a good impression of Ares. To be realistic, no one does anything without profit, and there are only two reasons to do everything - to obtain benefits, and to protect one's own interests. This is the way goblins behave.

Of course, Ares was reluctant to refute or say more.

"The corpses here have all been peeled open and their internal organs have been hollowed out, why is that?"

Holding back the stinking corpses, Gianna asked.

"Why? Quite simply, the bugs are for food, and the internal organs are energy-rich organs, and the bugs love it. Just as wild beasts usually bite open the belly of their prey and eat the internal organs. These bugs are essentially the same as the predatory beasts. ”

Atwood said.