The Shepherds Are Dense – Chapter 1188

Chapter 1185
“One Who Hides in a Horse’s Belly”
“—And you sponsored him.”
Eivass affirmed.
He gazed at Grandet’s eyes, as if seeing into his heart: “Because you are, ‘One Who Hides in a Horse’s Belly’… right.”
In truth, Eivass did not specifically remember Grandet’s past.
He only vaguely recalled that Grandet seemed to have suffered a serious illness and, as a child, crawled into a horse’s belly… and then recovered. This resulted in him becoming so ugly.
“Yes, just like me.”
But Grandet said frankly, showing no shame about the matter: “From that preparatory Priestess named Nia, Hassan could have received a handsome appearance. However, due to the hardships of fate, he became dark, ugly, thin, and short. You must have heard my story, right?”
“Mmm, forced to hide in a horse’s belly, which deformed your appearance… something like that.”
Eivass replied vaguely.
“That’s right,” Grandet slowly nodded. “My parents provoked enemies—the goblins of the ‘Golden Tooth’ clan. They belonged to the True Gold faction, favoring the purchase and monopolization of various mining industries within the Merchant Guild, while the Dead Eye family originated from the Silver Tongued faction… Our business mainly involved investment and deception.”
He revealed a frank smile to Eivass at this point: “For major clients worth maintaining, we are the best investors. Other goblins wouldn’t offer such favorable prices as we do. Because we understand what the future holds—”
“And for those without a future, you would simply turn to fraud and squeeze out their last cent, right?”
Eivass chuckled.
He was aware of this—even if there wasn’t relevant knowledge in the game, the factions of the Goblin Merchant Guild were not secret; a quick inquiry would reveal them.
Grandet did not defend himself, merely smiled at Eivass and continued his story: “We goblins have a festival called the March Festival—similar to your human custom of celebrating a one-year-old’s birthday. This is because, in the past, Troll sorcerers liked to eat goblins younger than three months old. Therefore, surviving past three months was a sign of luck… meaning you were unlikely to be eaten in the short term. It was a festival worth celebrating.”
“And during the March Festival for my twin sister and me, our family was poisoned. The entire family died because of it—my parents, my fourteen elder brothers, and twelve elder sisters all died. My sister and I also became poisoned after drinking our mother’s milk.”
“But my mother knew some witchcraft. She killed a horse and sewed me inside its belly.”
“A horse’s belly…”
Eivass mused: “A white horse symbolizes the noon sun in rituals, bright and passionate, full of yang energy. White horse heart’s blood is said to have the power of Resurrection… But didn’t the assassins notice one person was missing?”
“That’s where the coincidence lies. My parents hadn’t announced this was a twin birth. After the assassins finished counting, they found the number to be correct, and then they left.”
Grandet narrowed his eyes: “The reason my mother chose me instead of my twin sister… was because I was quieter. She was crying due to discomfort, while I remained silent. And I didn’t make a sound until I was discovered, which is why I survived.”
“Later, I asked around… the success rate of my mother’s Simple Ritual for detoxification was only 20%. I was lucky enough, and the price I paid was this distorted face. It was from that moment on that I swore to remain silent forever, to remain calm forever. Never to show the slightest flaw… and never to let an enemy go.”
“And before, you realized you were quite similar to Fiery Fist, right.”
Eivass said.
He did not ask what happened to the “Golden Tooth clan” afterward.
Grandet standing here peacefully now, as the head of a faction within the Goblin Merchant Guild, a near Fifth Tier powerhouse… already provided the answer.
“Yes.”
Grandet chuckled, but there was little amusement in his laughter. “Both of us survived by sheer luck, the last of our family, both who had the chance to be beautiful but became ugly… That’s why when I heard his story, I decided to give him a chance.”
“The Rebel Army he joined was originally my influence. I gave him a chance, the possibility of revenge, with an 80% chance of dying on the spot—he accepted without hesitation and survived.”
“—That is ‘Fiery Fist’.”
“What exactly is Fiery Fist?”
Eivass pressed: “This isn’t Star Antinomy Alchemy.”
“It’s the Dwarves’ blasphemous craft.”
Grandet answered without reservation: “Dwarven artificers already possessed the ability to craft extraordinary equipment. But they researched a completely new technology… They compressed and sealed a complete Phantom Demon into a piece of equipment, turning it into a cybernetic body. Through the concept of ‘connection between the cybernetic and physical body,’ they linked the soul with the Phantom Demon. Thus, mortals were able to gain the memories and power of the Phantom Demon. The price was that they would see illusions only they could perceive… and they would have to communicate and converse with the Phantom Demon within those illusions.”
—It sounded a bit like Johnny Silverhand.
The thought crossed Eivass’s mind.
He slowly said: “Because you survived with a 20% chance, you intend to make him undergo this trial as well?”
Grandet spread his hands: “It’s not that I’m making things difficult for him, but this surgery involves soul fusion, and the success rate was inherently low. Or rather, it was precisely because I had just learned of this technology and knew this coincidentally low success rate… that I had an inspiration to contact a disabled mortal from across the ocean.”
“This is fate, isn’t it, Your Excellency?”
Eivass did not answer him but continued to press: “So, he became Fiery Fist Hassan?”
“He is one of the very few rebel leaders who successfully launched a rebellion.”
Grandet nodded. “With my sponsorship and support, he succeeded in assassinating that Lord and burning down the entire oasis, which was destined to perish.”
“In the midst of that sky-high inferno, Fiery Fist Hassan’s story was destined to be unveiled. He proved that Lords could be killed and provided a template for rebels in other regions.”
“Precisely because of this level of rebellion, it could not be tolerated by the Lords. Many Lords in the surrounding areas sent people to hunt down Hassan, and Hassan evaded eight encirclements. On the ninth, he finally slipped up and was captured.”
“—And I gave him another chance.”
Grandet smiled slightly: “Consider it an investment—I sent people to intercept him and told him that Anxi could no longer accommodate him. He could kill a Lord and destroy an oasis, but he couldn’t destroy such a civilization. Fundamentally, it was because he lacked culture.”
“It is precisely because he lacks knowledge that he cannot understand why; it is precisely because he lacks culture that he cannot make people aware of the anger in his heart.”
“So I sent him to the Daffodil Duchy and, through my connections, found him a Mage Tower Master as a mentor.”
“I told him to accumulate power, to learn, to think… Those remnants of the rebel army are like firewood; they burn like fire, guiding his way home in the darkness. And he only has one chance… If he fails next time, I will never save him.”
“And now, he has returned.”
“He must also be prepared to take this once-in-a-lifetime examination.”