I do not own Goblin Slayer

(All of this belongs to the one and only: Kumo Kagyu)

Chapter 3: Plans for Later

The Promised Adventure

In the Tavern Area…

"I'm telling all of you the honest truth here!" Spearman berated loudly towards the group of people that were seated with him. Almost all of them were thinking that Spearman was just joking around like he usually does, what with him spouting idiotic nonsense. But with what Spearman was saying now, it took the cake for the most nonsensical thing he's said yet. That the female adventurer that was harassing Goblin Slayer from earlier, was in fact, a hero of legend. For most of them, there was no way a person like her could even come close to a title like "Hero", not in a hundred years.

"You're telling me that that adventurer is one of those "hero" types? I don't know about that one pal. Hell, she seems to be on the younger side of adventuring to me if I'm being honest here." Heavy Warrior said with a sigh, shaking his head from how illogical it sounded. Spearman responded with a head shake of his own, wondering how Heavy Warrior of all people didn't see the resemblance.

"Shake your head all you want muscle-for-brains, but I can tell you right now that that young girl is the one that killed a Demon Lord not too long ago. I swear it on my pride as an adventurer that she is, without a doubt, a hero!" Spearman spoke towards the group of people in front of him, making most of the women there shake their heads furiously.

"I refuse to believe that such a rowdy girl like her is an apparent hero! There's just no way that could be the case. I mean, after seeing how she conducted herself with strangers she just met, not to mention how she acted with Goblin Slayer-san, that woman appears to be nothing more than an excited child!" Priestess said with a look of annoyance, finding no qualities in the woman that would link her to being a hero. A round of rapid head nods from her fellow female companions followed suit from her comment, making her feel vindicated. However, that same comment gave an opening for a certain dwarf to make a snippy comment.

"But aren't you a bit young yourself, huh little one?" Dwarf Shaman retorted back with a smirk, watching as Priestess's face turned extremely red. The old dwarf could only laugh at his companion's actions, seeing as how she was now covering her face with her hat. But just when Priestess was about to faint from her embarrassment, an elven ranger began to speak about her own concerns about the infamous female adventurer.

"I agree, that human girl is just a ball of nerves if you ask me! I mean who would openly jump onto Orcbolg like that?!" High Elf Archer shouted towards the group, hoping that some of them would relate with her on that front.

What she got in return was fast acknowledgement from most of the females, while also receiving knowing looks from all of the men in the group, smirking at her own hypocrisy. This then resulted in not only High Elf Archer blushing madly, but most of the other females as well, knowing all too well that they would do just the same if they had the same amount of confidence as that woman from earlier. Like could you imagine the things they could do if they could openly express their need for Goblin Slayer's attention?

"On the contrary Long Ears, they're quite a few people that I know that would be more than happy to get the chance to get the jump on Beardcutter, if the situation allowed it…" Dwarf Shaman said coyly, looking towards the various women seated within the group, almost all of their blushes now changing to a very dark shade of pink, heavy embarrassment dusting their faces.

"S-Shut it, you damn dirty dwarf!" High Elf Archer yelled out towards Dwarf Shaman, who only responded with a laugh, causing the elven ranger to blush even harder. She then ran up to said dwarf to harmlessly slap him silly. Calming themselves as best they could, the female adventurers reigned in their embarrassment, trying to stop the dwarf from making anymore comments. It was at this time that Lizard Priest spoke his mind to the group.

"Your observations are interesting to say the least, Valiant Spearman. You seem to put much stock in that female adventurer for a reason. Both my party and I would be foolish to not take such words for granted." Lizardman Priest said with a bowed head, getting a furious head nodding from Spearman. To this, Female Knight slammed her gloved fist onto the table, getting the group's intention.

"R-Regardless! That woman must be new to adventuring, and seeing Goblin Slayer conduct himself should've taught her a few things about self restraint. She should also learn some manners while she's at it!" Female Knight coughed out, trying her best to not imagine herself jumping onto Goblin Slayer in the middle of the night, with him wearing no armor. She was however, failing miserably, considering she was now getting hot and bothered by her overt imagination. Heavy Warrior could only sigh, wondering what the hell has been going on with Female Knight for the past several hours.

"I don't know about that. To me, that girl looked like she knew plenty about swinging a sword around. She also gives off the impression that she can even cast a few spells. Even more so, have you noticed the air that surrounds her? It's like she's an important figure or something along those lines." Amazon Warrior said while rubbing her chin, wondering how a small girl like her was giving off such a strong warrior's aura. This in turn lit up Spearman's eyes, feeling vindicated once again in the moment.

"Right?! I'm telling you people, she's one of those heroes that parents tell to their kids at night, or what you see in one of those legends of old written in old, dusty tomes or some shit! C'mon woman, help me convince these fools already!" Spearman cried out towards Witch, who was still puffing out tufts of purple smoke. Looking towards the group of expectant eyes now looking at her, Witch let out a small chuckle, a mist of purple smoke blanketing the table.

"My leader… isn't one… to bet… his pride… so easily… on trivial… matters… Moreover… that woman… seems... to keep… some impressive… company…" Witch said softly towards the group, causing all of them to tilt their heads. Spearman was about to ask what she meant by that, when the sound of heavy boots hitting the ground could be heard in the distance. Everyone except Witch then turned their attention towards the distance, seeing the familiar image of Goblin Slayer walking towards them.

Everyone at the tavern table sighed in relief seeing that the man of the hour was now coming back to them. However, the feeling was short lived among most of the females as they saw the infamous female adventurer riding on his shoulders, the feeling of fire now relighting itself within them. The males on the other hand had taken notice of two more women walking next to Goblin Slayer, wondering how they were involved in this whole ordeal. Soon after, Goblin Slayer went looking for a chair to sit at the table, while also fetching two more chairs for the other female companions that followed him. After finding a spot for both himself, and the other two female companions at the table, both them and Goblin Slayer sat down, waiting until everyone had settled down. A few moments of awkward silence and piercing glares had passed, until Goblin Slayer spoke in a casual tone towards the table.

"I'll keep this short, I've agreed to their call for aid. But for now, I'll be going on a goblin quest. Time is of the essence, so I'll ask all of you only once, do any of you wish to accompany me?" Goblin Slayer spoke with a curt tone, making it clear to everyone listening that there was no room for small talk. Although annoyingly curious of the three new adventurers that sat by him, all of Goblin Slayer's party sat up immediately from their seats and began walking out of the tavern, towards the guild's entrance.

Nodding with a hefty grunt from his party's actions, Goblin Slayer then sat up from the table, followed by the other two female adventurers. Looking towards the other people seated at the table, Goblin Slayer only stared at them, getting knowing looks from the others who've known him for so long. With murmured voices, the group seated at table only looked at Goblin Slayer with a defeated smile. Getting up from the table themselves, they then voiced their thoughts so that Goblin Slayer could leave quickly.

"Not this time pal, I took on a quest with Ms. Knight over there to clear out some brigand encampment that's been spotted near Gale Town. But just so you know, we'll clear out that camp within the day. So be sure to keep tabs with us as soon as you can when you're done with your quest, got it?" Heavy Warrior said with a grin, walking up to Goblin Slayer, and patting the side of his arm with a hearty slap. Goblin Slayer nodded in response, lightly bumping the bottom of his fist at Heavy Warrior's chest plate, making said man grin wider. With a small nod to the new female adventurers, Heavy Warrior made his way out of the tavern, and towards the guild entrance, just like his party.

With a small huff of annoyance, Female Knight also walked up to Goblin Slayer, making sure to just look at Goblin Slayer, and not the other woman currently sitting on his shoulders at the moment.

"You better finish up that little goblin quest quickly, because me and that lumex over there will finish ours in a heartbeat. You'd also be keen in contacting us as soon as you're done too, since I am also heavily interested in what you and those women agreed to." Female Knight said with a haughty tone, her arms crossed and her face slightly turned to the right. Female Knight tried her best to make it seem like she didn't really care for what he had to say, but if anyone could've seen her from a distance, it was obvious she was desperately seeking his attention.

"Understood, but if I may, why are you so interested in my dealings with these women in the first place?" Goblin Slayer asked in a questioning tone, his head tilted slightly as he asked. The question in turn then made Female Knight's eyes go wide open, a shade of red blanketing her face almost immediately.

"T-That's because I-I j-just wanna know what a good friend of m-mine is getting h-himself into! W-What's wrong with that, huh?!" Female Knight said with a high pitched voice, her arms now placed in front of her waist, while her hands were curled upward. Comically large puffs of steam came off from her red face, making Sage and Sword Saint chuckle a little to themselves, making Female Knight eye them with a cute glare.

"W-What's so funny, huh?! Can't a woman worry about her friend or something?!" Female Knight tried reasoning out to the two other women, who only looked at her with a knowing look.

"Oh, there's nothing wrong with that sentiment, it's very sweet actually. Just seeing you try so hard not to look like you care, but you really do is very amusing. If you want to speak to Slayer-san, just be upfront with him! He certainly doesn't seem like the type of person to think negatively of someone when they speak their mind freely." Sage said quietly with a smile, making Female Knight's face get even redder. Sword Saint agreed with Sage's words, making Female Knight eye them both with another cute glare. It was then Hero's turn to speak up, making the woman look up to her with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, what she said. Also if I were you, I'd be like ~ Be careful out there Goblin Slayer! Make sure you put those lame goblins in the dirt as soon as you can, Cause I wanna see you again as soon as I can! ~ Or something like that, haha!" Hero said with a sing-songy voice, laughing loudly as she saw Female Knight gagging on her own spit when she heard her words.

"A-Are you an actual i-idiot?! I-I can't just say something like that to h-him! W-What would the others think of me if I were to say something so childish to him huh?!" Female Knight was shouting as quietly as possible to Hero, who only shrugged in her direction while a smile was painted on her face.

"But dontcha wanna see this guy again? Cause to me, it sounds like you wanna see him as soon as possible." Hero spoke out casually, which made a vein of irritation pop up on Female Knight's head.

"Of course I want to see this idiot back from his quest as soon as possible!" Female Knight said with a quiet yell again towards Hero, making her smile all the larger.

"So what's the problem then, huh? Just say you wanna see him again as soon as possible, and you'll be set!" Hero said with a toothy grin, making Female Knight immediately pale at her words.

"W-What?! Is she serious?! God damn it this woman! Little scamp made me fall right into a trap! DAMN IT ALL TO HELL, I KNEW I WOULDN'T LIKE HER!" Female Knight screamed internally to herself, already coming up with thoughts of dragging the woman in question's face through a field of jagged rocks when she gets the chance. But those thoughts were put on pause when she saw Goblin Slayer, looking at her with undivided attention. Blushing like mad now, Female Knight swore up and down to herself, all the while cursing Hero with every known foul mouthed word known to her within her mind. With a defeated sigh, Female Knight looked at Goblin Slayer with a cute pout that had only been seen by Heavy Warrior in the past.

"I-I-I. W-Want. To. S-See. Y-Y-You. Soon. O-O-Okay?" Female Knight said with the meekest voice she ever spoke in, only audible to Goblin Slayer, while the three other women were wondering what she was mumbling about.

"I will return as soon as possible. So don't worry yourself with me, ok?" Goblin Slayer responded back with a firm voice, effectively gripping Female Knight's heart and soul like no man has ever done before, not even Heavy Warrior. But what sealed the deal was when he gently placed his hand on her shoulder, making everything around them freeze in time, at least, that's what it felt like for her.

"But you on the other hand, I wish for your safety. It wouldn't be pleasant for me to hear that you've been injured by some nameless thug, or petty thief that had somehow gotten the better of you. I know you're in good company with him covering your flank, and you yourself are also very capable as well." Goblin Slayer reassured Female Knight, making her blush deeper at his compliment. But the man wasn't done, as he kept up with his answer.

"But in the end, you're still a woman, and most men from that cut of cloth are similar to goblins in that mindset. And that usually means they don't have any good intentions for any kind of woman. So I'll ask you again to be careful, alright?" Goblin Slayer said in a softer tone, making the only sounds coming from Female Knight to be cute whimpers of acknowledgement, her eyes downcasted as she was making noise, considering she couldn't look at Goblin Slayer from how much he was affecting her.

With a firm grunt and a head nod, Goblin Slayer let go of Female Knight's shoulder, patting her gently on the back as she quietly made her exit out of the tavern, over towards Heavy Warrior. Her mind was assaulted with millions of thoughts of what just occurred, her own head berating her at how reckless she was with making her intentions more blatant. But her heart on the other hand was bouncing wildly inside her with joy, all for the simple fact that Goblin Slayer had gently touched her. As for her soul, it was set alight with blazing passion knowing that Goblin Slayer seemed to care about her, going as far as worrying about her person.

Female Knight had never experienced these profound feelings of affection and care before, at least, not to this extent. The only other person to even illicit these feelings were from Heavy Warrior, but even then it was never to the point that Goblin Slayer had seemingly sparked from within her, and all for simply stating that he worries for her, what more if he were to do more to her?

But even when those thoughts made her feel light and giddy on the inside, Female Knight would have to put them on hold, at least for now, for she had a quest to clear with the lumex she was currently walking to. For even when she loved the new feelings she was experiencing, she was still a professional, and she would ensure her safety for her, and the lumex. But deep down, she was also doing it for Goblin Slayer's sake too. She didn't want to make the man on her mind any more worried for her person.

Returning back to Goblin Slayer, it was Amazon Warrior next that came to him, a large smile on her face.

"Gotta clean up what's left of a wizard's attempt of reanimation over at Ember City's abandoned district, might take me a bit since I'm going alone for this one. But once we see each other again, we can talk more about what you gotta talk about, 'kay Goblin Slayer?" Amazon Warrior said with a hearty smile on her face, sneaking glances at the other women that surrounded Goblin Slayer.

"Mmm, if that is the case, so be it. Be safe on your travels, as I recall, Ember City is a far ways away from here, so be sure to rest accordingly if you're heading there on foot. Also be mindful when fighting wizards, they are tricky." Goblin Slayer spoke with a grunt to Amazon Warrior, lightly fist bumping the side of her shoulder, making Amazon Warrior smile bigger as a result.

"Oh don't worry about me, you goblin idiot. You be sure to take it easy with those girls you have following you now, alright?" Amazon Warrior said with a softer smile, grunting happily when she saw Goblin Slayer nod his head.

Having finished talking with Goblin Slayer, Amazon Warrior then made her way out of the tavern. Jogging with purpose, Amazon Warrior then went out of the guild, and tried scouting out any nearby over traveling carriages that were headed towards Ember City. Sighing loudly when she couldn't find any, she grunted disappointedly, and started walking in the direction towards the city. Sighing once again the air, Amazon Warrior mentally prepared herself, for a journey on foot towards Ember City would take at least three days.

"So much for a quick quest…" Amazon Warrior muttered to herself, not happy she was going to have sore feet for the next few days.

Back with Goblin Slayer, Spearman and Witch walked up to him, a large smile on Spearman, while Witch had a small grin plastered on her face.

"Gotta date with the misses here over at the famous Mountain Bridge. 'Parently a bunch of trolls thought it was a good idea to set up shop, and now we're being called up to tell'em to take a hike." Spearman said with vigor. Witch simply giggled softly along with Spearman's statement, looking at Goblin Slayer expectantly.

"It would seem… that you are saddled… with strong... acquaintances… this time… Goblin Slayer…" Witch said softly, brushing her eyes over each of the women that clung close to Goblin Slayer's figure, especially the one that seemed to be teeming with magical prowess.

"Be sure… to take… good care… of them… For it is… a man's duty… to protect women… when he can…" Witch said with another soft smile, earning a solid look from Goblin Slayer.

"Of course, I'll make sure that these adventurers aren't harmed in any way." Goblin Slayer said with a firm voice, making the Sword Saint, Sage, and Hero grin softly.

"Better be now, you hear?! As one of your splendid companions, I expect you to follow up on your word, Goblin-for-brains! Also, be sure to give me the heads up with that quest you got going on, alright?" Spearman said with vigor, slapping Goblin Slayer hard on his shoulder as he made his way out of the Guild.

"Mhm, I give you my word that they'll be ok." Goblin Slayer responded back, gently tapping Spearman's shoulder in the process. Spearman could only grin a little bigger at the action, taking massive strides out of the Guild to wrap up his quest as fast as he could.

Witch followed suit, the sway in her steps just a bit more exaggerated, making the whole Guild look at her with wandering eyes. A soft giggle left her as she caught the little irritation that seemed to bloom on Sage's face as she walked. And within a short span of time, all of the people at the tavern dispersed to do their own quests, and Goblin Slayer had to finish up the last of his business as well.

Walking up towards the receptionist desk, Goblin Slayer waited patiently for Guild Girl to appear. Following his lead, Sword Saint and Sage stuck closely behind him, waiting for the Guild's receptionist to appear as well. A few moments went by and nothing happened, which made Goblin Slayer tilt his head. Usually known for her punctuality, Goblin Slayer wondered where she was at the moment. And within that same thought, Guild Girl appeared from the back, her face containing a warm smile for Goblin Slayer.

However, the moment Guild Girl caught a glimpse of the other women that stuck close to Goblin Slayer, her smile strained just a bit. But what really soured her mood was when she took notice of Hero still happily resting on Goblin Slayer's shoulders, seemingly content with her time with him. Jealousy flooded the mind of Guild Girl instantly, and once Hero took notice of the mood shift of Guild Girl, she playfully stuck out her tongue, edging Guild Girl even more. This would in turn piss off the poor woman so much, she almost left the room again, only to be stopped when she heard Goblin Slayer's voice.

"Hello, I'm here to inform you that I'll be taking on that goblin quest posted recently. I'll be done with it by the end of the day. These adventurers will also be joining my party for this quest as well." Goblin Slayer firmly said, Guild Girl watching with dreamy eyes at the man she loved. Just hearing his voice was enough to brighten her mood, and make her forget about the three vixens that were currently next to him.

"Oh of course Goblin Slayer! These adventurers may join your quest, and the Guild appreciates the work you do for us! And just because you're so special, I took a peek at the upcoming quests as well. Fortunately, there are no other goblin quests for the time being after this one, so lucky you! If there is anything else you would like to discuss with me afterwards, please feel free to do so." Guild Girl said with a peppy smile, Goblin Slayer nodded his head in acceptance.

"I appreciate your help greatly. It also eases my mind that you seem ok, considering you look much better when you smile." Goblin Slayer said casually, effectively making Guild Girl's mind freeze over, trying to process what he just said to her. The three other adventurers that were stuck by him all smiled at his endearing candor, wondering if he would say something so sweet-like to them someday.

"I will return, goodbye for now." Goblin Slayer said firmly, now making his way towards the exit with haste. Sage and Sword Saint followed closely behind, with Hero still comfortably sitting on Goblin Slayer shoulders.

Watching his retreating figure grow smaller in the distance, Guild Girl sighed to herself once she was sound of mind once more. How that man could just take up all of her attention from just saying something sweet-like is still a mystery to her, yet she also knew that she loved it when he did it. Thoughts of growing old with Goblin Slayer and settling down with children was always a dream for Guild Girl, and one she felt like was going to come true sooner than she thinks, considering Goblin Slayer was being taught social cues as of late. But just as she was feeling happy as could be, Guild Girl took one more look at the tomboy currently riding Goblin Slayer shoulders and couldn't shake off this uneasy feeling of rivalry, as if she had a leg up on her, despite being an entirely new person to Goblin Slayer.

"I shouldn't be worried about that crass, tomboy hussy, and yet she still has this air about her… If I don't hurry, I might lose him for certain this time… Well not anymore! I will have you yet, Goblin Slayer!" Guild Girl thought passionately inside of her, already thinking of a way to celebrate Goblin Slayer's certain victory of his soon to be completed quest.

...

I found my account password!

But for real, thanks for hanging in there, hope this chapter holds you over until we get to the next one. And with that, Hope to see you guys in the next chapter!