Goblin Slayer! Volume 16 is the sixteenth light novel volume in the Goblin Slayer! series, released on July 14, 2022.
Official Synopsis[]
- HE DOES NOT LET ANYONE ROLL THE DICE.
- Goblin Slayer and his party have arrived at the royal capital, which is buzzing with excitement over a jousting tournament. Among the participants are Rhea Fighter and Wizard Boy, who continue to grow by leaps and bounds. The party hopes to enjoy a brief respite, but things take a turn when the king’s younger sister collapses, cursed by someone or something. Meanwhile, a hint of evil ash lurks within the frenzied capital. Priestess finds herself in a most unexpected role… and Goblin Slayer is soon taking orders from The King!
- - Yen Press
Chapters[]
- Prologue: A Knight's Tale
- Chapter 1: A Vacation in the Capital
- Interlude: They're the Ones Who Will Die
- Chapter 2: They Call Me
- Interlude: Coming to Adventure
- Chapter 3: Cool Running
- Chapter 4: Rock You!
- Interlude: Your Eyes Only
- Epilogue: It's a Wonderful Life!
Summary[]
Prologue[]
As Rhea Fighter takes part in a jousting competition at her old home town, Wizard Boy tries to keep her focused on the competition and not getting overly fired up. He repeatedly advised her that she needed to stay mounted on her donkey as she put on her hand-me-down, cobbled together armor. However, as she repeated this advice to herself, she remembers if she got off the donkey, she'd be allowed to duel her opponent with her sword which fired her up further much to Wizard Boy's annoyance. This tournament they were taking part in was a preliminary for an even bigger jousting tournament being held in the Capital.
As Rhea Fighter charges into the competition against her final opponent, she loses control of her lance much to her frustrations. However, she is able to secure it at the last second and completely send her opponent flying off his horse, securing her win and entry into the Finals in the Capital. Wizard Boy however is left exasperated at Rhea Fighter's inability to hold back despite her small size.
Chapter 1[]
Vacation's where I wanna be
As Cow Girl experiences culture shock at the sight of a busy Capital City, her friend Guild Girl leads her down the streets showing her the spectacles of the coming Jousting Tournament. Priestess, despite having been to the Capital before notes there are even more people in the streets now than then due to the tournament; the sheer amount giving her culture shock as well. High Elf Archer and Dwarf Shaman argue as usual while Lizard Priest laments not being able to partake in the competition himself due to not finding a steed that he could mount. Learning that every race in the Kingdom has at least one representation in the tournament, including the Lizardmen, Lizard Priest cackles with joy, wanting to see more. As the group enjoy themselves, Cow Girl looks to Goblin Slayer, asking if he has anything he'd like to do, but he sadly admits he doesn't know what to do while on vacation.
Days earlier, Guild Girl and Cow Girl expressed the idea of going to the Jousting Tournament in the Capital the the Party who agreed to go with the two. Seeing everyone agree, Goblin Slayer didn't put up a fight when Cow Girl attempted to sweet talk him into joining them. Arriving in the Capital, High Elf Archer drags Priestess away to make up for "last time", as Goblin Slayer is dragged away by Dwarf Shaman and Lizard Priest. Dwarf Shaman makes a promise to Cow Girl to have him back later on as Guild Girl her to indulge in some shopping with her.
A Nice Chat
As Guild Girl leads Cow Girl into the large mall full of shops and boutiques, over 160 shops to be precise, Cow Girl is left aghast, barely able to contain herself. Guild Girl leads her through the stores, like a pro, teaching her about fashion, and warning her about the pricing that was rather costly. Finding a shop with a Myrmidon Wormfolk Maiden, selling her silk at a bartering price; Cow Girl however feels she couldn't try to undersell her, fearing insulting her. However, a centaur woman dressed in men's clothing tries the silk and intends to buy it for her employer at the price of "One victory dedicated to the seller" much to the embarrassment to her employer, revealing themselves to be Female Merchant and Lightning. As the quartet visited a cafe, Cow Girl was left confused at the rather confusing menu, while Guild Girl and Female Merchant masterfully navigated it. Lightning meanwhile was up to her usual antics flirting with the lovely ladies around her.
Looking for an offering
Elsewhere, High Elf Archer and Priestess travel through the city stalls looking for souvenirs and offerings for the Temple. As Priestess lamented that the Female Knight she looked up to wasn't going to apart of the Tournament, she hilariously envisions what she would be as a knight and just laughs at the idea. After buying some wool knitted hats shaped like knights' helms, specifically ones that resembled Goblin Slayer's helmet, Priestess continued on to the cemetery. Paying their respects to Priestess' old teammate Wizard, Priestess notices all the Gods' statues have been covered by sheets due to all the different races and believers coming to the Capital (and not offend anyone). As they feel unease, about the possibility of the forces of Chaos attacking the city, Priestess notices a flower already on Wizard's grave and wonders who placed it there.
At the Coliseum, Rhea Fighter learns the Jousting Tournament has suspended their Rhea Division, much to her and Wizard Boy's frustrations. However, the Coliseum worker corrects that only the divisions were closed so all the fighters could fight together as a show of anti-discrimination and cooperation. Wizard Boy however, while approving of the cooperation, points out the flaw of having a Rhea battle a full grown human. However, as the knight in charge gives Wizard Boy a lecture about not discriminating or believing that Rhea Fighter couldn't win against others simply because she was a Rhea; but then accidentally says something insensitive to Rhea Fighter about her size causing her to freak out. As Wizard Boy diffused the situation, he began trying to encourage Rhea Fighter to leave things for the Tournament and tried to come up with a plan of action as they finalized her application.
A Night Stroll
That night, as his Party and friends enjoyed themselves, Goblin Slayer instinctively went on patrol. Guild Girl however followed him and playfully asked him to be her guide; despite admitting she grew up in the Capital, she admitted if she "went home" in her slightly tipsy state she'd only earn a lecture. As they walked the streets, Goblin Slayer couldn't help but notice no one was as put off as usual by his appearance, nor the fact that he was accompanying a young noble woman; the irony of the situation not being lost on him.
Interlude[]
As the Royal Court holds council with representatives of the five most prominent Temples, a Paladin of the Supreme God continues to cause an incident as he virtue signals about the caution shown towards the Dark Elven "Underground Empire", accusing it as "discrimination". As The Princess, representing the Temple of the Earth Mother, tries to hold back her yawns at his continued complaining, she argues that the covering of the Earth Mother's angelic wings as to not "offend Birdfolk", is incredibly shortsighted as all worship her, not just humans. A beautiful young Half-Elf cleric clad in bikini armor and a silk robe representing the Temple of Valkyrie, likewise protest the Paladin's accusations of her cleric's sacred armor as "disgraceful and scandalous", reminding him the simple, yet provocative, armor is a symbol of how one from even very humble beginnings can rise up to see amongst their Goddess. Yet the Paladin retorts that said stories lauds slavery which he finds immoral like the Vikings tales of raiding. This however earns him the ire of Knowledge Cleric, representing the Temple of the God of Knowledge, who reminds him tales and culture go hand in hand as well as interpretation so are not to be taken literally nor should he pass judgement on a culture that is not his. As she finishes her lecture, Princess, in full agreement with her, notices a a cute white creature at Knowledge Cleric's feet.
As they argue, a priestess of the Trade God spoke up, earning a smile from The King which made Princess wonder if her brother knew her personally. Immediately, she cast shade on the Paladin for condemning not paying Padfoots on the grounds that the Kingdom was "Not a Zoo". The Supreme God Paladin argued that the gambling dens and places of ill repute dress in a fashion similar to Harefolk women, which he sighted was offensive. Trade Nun however explained that some women enjoy dressing sexy, some customers enjoy the fanservice, which in turn causes them to spend more money, which makes the Kingdom more prosperous. Her explanation of basic economics finally silencing the Supreme God's Paladin from his rants of piety.
As the meeting continued, Princess thought she detected the smell of ash.
Chapter 2[]
Round One: Flawless Victory, no seriously
The next day, as the Jousting Tournament starts, Rhea Fighter realizes she is comically outclassed by her opponent as she stares at his armor, giant war-horse, and listens to his numerous accolades being listed. Wizard Boy is able to reinvigorate her by listing her as the "Finest Fighter of the Shire of Rhea" and announcing she is a student of He who went There and Back Again to the crowd, who (after a beat) cheered for her. Despite her renewed vigor, Rhea Fighter still panicked as the referee swung his flag and she charged in with her donkey; trying her hardest to keep the heavy lance up. After the riders' lances collided, Rhea Fighter quickly tried to get down off her donkey and prepare for the sword fight, fumbling with each step until Wizard Boy pointed out she succeeded in unmounting her opponent, winning her first round. As the crowd applauded for her unexpected flawless victory, Wizard Boy raised her victory arm up as she was still stuck in a stupor.
Back in their seats, Goblin Slayer's Party is shocked to see the duo are not only apart of the Tourney, but have won their first round soundly. As Guild Girl explains the rules of the tourney, Princess surprises everyone by showing up in their booth, much to Guild Girl's shock. While she seats herself beside Priestess, and Cow immediately takes note that the two girls look nearly identical, everyone notes Princess looks very pale; leading to her collapse. As Goblin Slayer and Guild Girl quickly sprint off for a doctor, Priestess discovers a mark on Princess's neck.
As a doctor looked over the Princess in her room, Priestess drew their attention to the mark on her neck, heavily implying she was cursed. The King agreed with her assessment and deduced the cause was an immortal Vampire Lord that he had sealed away years ago with his Adventurer Party to earn his kingship, as he had realized the seal he placed had began to weaken. High Elf Archer immediately proposed simple going to the magic cave to fix the seal, and after learning the Staff of the Earth Mother was the key, she recommended Priestess take charge. The King however, stated he wanted Priestess to remain in the Capital for unknown reasons as he revealed the Forces of Chaos have taken over the shrine, specifically Goblins. Right away, Goblin Slayer volunteered for the job seeing as how he was the expert, and sending him would rouse the least amount of suspicion.
Interlude[]
Exiting a carriage she was tasked on protecting, The Girl, completes her assignment and thanks her temporary Party members Choushunka, Belvedere, Legato Improvvisazione, and Kyuu for helping her get to the Capital. As they part ways, Choushunka wishes her luck for her visit and hopes to see her again, as The Girl admits she came to see more than the tournament. Looking around, the sheer size of the Capital and the things to do slightly overly her but she excitedly begins her sight seeing.
Starting off, The Girl decides to go see the Castle, and after squeezing through the large crowds, she gets to the Castle and is left aghast at the view. Her attention is quickly drawn to a young girl with a spear, slightly older than her, with her Party members who are surprised none of their warriors are joining the tournament. Suddenly, "Spear Girl" excitedly rushes towards The Girl, but her attention is drawn to the castle balcony to the Princess.
While The Girl and the large crowd are excited to see the King's little sister, "Spear Girl" and her Party notice something seems "off" about her. She seemed to have longer hair and looked very uncomfortable, like she was out of her element.
Chapter 3[]
The Party finds the Staff of the Earth Mother
Deep in the Earth Mother's Sanctuary, Goblin Slayer and the rest of his Party minus Priestess quickly slaughter the Goblins taking residence there. As they continue to search the Earth Mother's Sanctuary, they eventually come upon the Staff of the Earth Mother, the artifact needed to seal the Vampire Lord. However, upon finding said artifact, the Party hilariously argue if any of them are a strong or devout enough believers in the Earth Mother to pick up the sacred artifact. As conversation jokingly turns to how they cannot allow Goblin Slayer's "filthy hands", Goblin Slayer laments not having Priestess to take the staff. Suddenly, after Dwarf Shaman and Lizard Priest take the staff, a large Golem is awakened and attacks the Party as they try to leave.
The Party continues to whittle down the army of Goblins in the Temple as they continue to move forward. With the sheer amount of Goblins, all lament not having Priestess as their support, sighting how valuable her Protection and Holy Light has become to their dynamics. However, as they continue, the sheer amount of Goblins and how coordinated they are makes Goblin Slayer realize their is something leading the Goblins, and deduces the leader is not another Goblin. Deeper in the Earth Mother's Sanctuary, the Vampire Lord loudly curses all the noise happening in his lair. As he yells at the Goblins around him to get to work defending his home, he decides to teach the Adventurers a lesson, personally.
Back at the Coliseum, the tournament is underway but has finally hit the snag that many foresaw from the new rules of combining all the Divisions: unfair match ups. Rhea Fighter's current opponent is in fact a Centaur, someone who can't be unhorsed, and both Wizard Boy and Rhea, along with many others, being calling out how completely unfair Rhea Fighter's odds are. After some planning, Rhea Fighter charges into "battle" again, but with the adjustment of her tactics, she is able to cause the Centaur Knight to fall over. After the judges debate the bout, they announce Rhea Fighter won the round for herself much to her elation.
Priestess, I mean "Princess" enjoys the Tourney
In the stands, Priestess plays the part of "Princess", with Cow Girl and Guild Girl by her side as her "Handmaidens". As she silently complains how terribly uncomfortable her dress is and trying desperately to make sure she doesn't slip up on her etiquette, her concerns drawn towards Supreme God's Paladin besides her. As he sits with her, he points towards the tourney and praises it as the "epitome of equality" proudly, but Priestess points out the painfully obvious disadvantage Rhea Fighter was in that Supreme God's Paladin can't seem to see. Priestess takes note that Supreme God Paladin is nothing like any of the Supreme God followers she knows; and is in fact more like an more extreme Female Knight marking him as "Someone who would put a fish on dry land and encourage it to run".
With his continued lecturing towards "Princess", Supreme God's Paladin strongly suggests making further "reforms", like ending the "revealing" garbs Priestesses wear during dancing ceremonies, the women partaking in the grape stomping, and even more. His continued condemnations only further drive the usually very calm and serene Priestess to nearly explode with anger, however, she is able to keep her cool with much effort. After he tries to make "Princess" see how these "issues" need to be fixed, Priestess finally gets him to shut up by reminding him "everyone is different" which causes him to storm out of the Royal box. As he leaves, Priestess notes the smell of ash while Guild Girl notes he very much doesn't act like a follower of the Supreme God.
Chapter 4[]
Cow Girl wishes Rhea Fighter luck
As Rhea Fighter waits for her next round, Cow Girl visits the duo and brings them some food to keep her energy up. As Wizard Boy recognizes her a Goblin Slayer's "Wife", he inquires if Goblin Slayer was at the tourney as well, only to be disappointed when Cow Girl reveals he's not present at the moment. Seeing through his disappointment, Rhea Fighter loudly realizes that he wanted Goblin Slayer to watch the duo in the tourney. Embarrassed, Wizard Boy loudly denies it much to Rhea Fighter and Cow Girl's amusement.
In the Coliseum, Wizard Boy uses magic paint to paint Rhea Fighter's armor a lustrous color much to the cheers of the crowd and distaste of her opponent, Supreme God's Paladin. The man simply scoffs at how much she looks like a display piece and feels that the rules about armor needs to be tightened as well as a myriad of other complaints, like "Princess's" friends. Despite this, Wizard Boy uses his magic speech to loudly make another rousing about Rhea Fighter, causing the crowd to loudly cheer for her much to Supreme God's Paladin confusion. Silently, Wizard Boy remarks to Supreme God's Paladin that the cheers are real fairness and equality. As they clash, and start racking up points, Supreme God's Paladin lands a rather powerful blow on Rhea Fighter but she is able to recover. While getting a new set of armor, the Coliseum erupts in terror as monsters come falling from the sky.
"Princess" rolls for initiative!
As Gargoyles came flying in, Priestess quickly takes charge and casts Protection to protect as many people as possible as the Royal guards arrived to defend her the "Princess". Priestess however, refuses to evacuate and instead casts Holy Light, drawing all attention to herself, calling out to the populace, asking for assistance in protecting civilians. Immediately many Adventurers, Warriors, Wizard, Fighters, and Priests answer their "Princess'" call to arms and begin defending the civilians and fighting back against the gargoyles. Among them is The Girl who is given help and encouragement by Examiner and her Sorceress Partner. Rhea Fighter however, didn't care about the chaos unfolding around her as she pulled out her sword and loudly declared to the dumb struck Supreme God's Paladin, that she intended to finish their duel right there and now!
After clashing their blades and psyching herself up, Rhea Fighter is able to bring her sword down on Supreme God's Paladin; shattering his blade and wounding his shoulder. Stumbling in her place, Rhea Fighter raises her sword and yells out her name to the Coliseum of monster corpses. As Wizard Boy catches her fall, she tells them they they are the champions, but he corrects her, she is the champion here, but didn't have the heart to remind her it wasn't even the finals yet.
Rhea Fighter refuses to concede!
Back in the Earth Mother's Sanctuary, High Elf Archer and her friends keep whittling down the Goblins numbers, with their usual banter filling the air of the chambers. However, the group quickly realizes the Goblins have started to become more organized and Goblin Slayer doubts a Shaman could lead them so effectively; alerting the Party to the potential of a powerful agent of Chaos close by. With only a fraction of warning from High Elf Archer, the Party is able to dodge a red beam of deadly energy slicing through the Goblins' rear flank towards them. After some caution, the intruder introduces himself to the Adventurers as a Vampire.
As Lizard Priest engages the Vampire Lord, High Elf Archer tries shooting the Lord but it has no effect other than him using his miasma to revive the Goblins into undeath. Cursing their luck for not having Priestess to banish the undead easily, Goblin Slayer and Dwarf Shaman decide to cut them down to manageable pieces that can't be reanimated. Seeing a moment of chance, High Elf Archer gives Goblin Slayer the word and flings a club at the Vampire's head, cracking it open and forcing his regeneration. As he regenerated and instinctively counted his discarded teeth on the ground (a little known weakness of vampires), Lizard Priest took the moment to bulk up and furiously charge at the Vampire. The Charge however, fails and the Party regroups as Vampire Lord is busy counting the teeth and fangs; after much deliberation, they decide to just go with Fire against the undead. However, as the Vampire makes his move, Lizard Priest disguises one of his Dragontooth Warriors as Goblin Slayer to distract him. The shattering of the bone warrior however causes the Vampire's compulsion to count the fragmented bones to arise, giving Goblin Slayer an opening to use a magic bag from High Elf Archer to seal the Vampire away in her Bag of Holding.
Interlude[]
Angry with his loss to Rhea Fighter, Supreme God's Paladin ranted and cursed at "how the world had fallen apart". How he needed to fix many things in the Kingdom, fix so many "backwards" ideals the people still held. As he ranted, he didn't realize he came faced by the Knight of Diamonds and the Silver-Haired Maid.
Surprised by them, the two read off a letter from Sword Maiden who revealed that Supreme God's Paladin was in fact not sent by her as a representative of the Supreme God and in fact has been acting on his own whims. Angered, Supreme God's Paladin argues Sword Maiden is far too traumatized from her past to be an effective leader, only to be countered that he seems to enjoy passing judgment off on everyone else but always seems to have an excuse for his actions. As he is taken aback by this criticisms, The Knight of Diamonds questions him on which God asked him to go on this social justice crusade, which only causes the maddened Paladin to pontificate his righteous justice more. Finally having enough, Knight of Diamonds reveals his identity to Supreme God's Paladin, causing him to go crazy and attack him, which ends in the Knight of Diamonds and Silver-Haired Maid cutting him down instantly.
With the hit complete, Silver-Haired Maid questions the King on how they'll cover this up including his release of the gargoyles earlier and cursing the Princess in his mad quest of social justice. However, she is left annoyed when he brushes it off to go have more fun in the coliseum. Annoyed by this, Silver-Haired Maid questions if the King had enough fun slicing through all the gargoyles and having fun in the tournament. The King however, playfully patted her head and said all that was left was for him to battle a young Spear Girl in green robes; but before leaving, the "Knight of Diamonds" kneels down and prays Supreme God's Paladin's "sorry soul" be judged fairly by the Gods Above.
Epilogue[]
Going back home
Using the Staff of the Earth Mother, Priestess and Priestess restrengthen the seal of the Night Lord in the Capital City. Successful, Princess congratulates Priestess on taking her place during the Tournament but laments she couldn't see it herself. As they talk about the drama of their adventure, Princess jokingly comments she must really be cursed given this was the second time the forces of chaos cursed her in some way, only for Priestess to laugh it off with her. As they go their separate ways, The King crosses paths with Priestess and thanks her for her service to the Kingdom and to his Family. After studying her face and seemingly coming to a realization, he asks her to remain his sister's "friend" as she takes her leave.
Elsewhere, Rhea Fighter lets her sorrow out that she didn't win the whole Tournament, having been dismounted during the finals. Despite her loss, Rhea Fighter remains in high spirits, once again reaffirming her dream of becoming "big, bigger than big" to her partner and donkey. As they lead the donkey down the road, Wizard Boy, in no hurry to return to Burglar, encourages her to find a detour of an adventure for them to get lost on.
Heading back home, Guild Girl and Cow Girl pleaded with Goblin Slayer and the rest of the Party to tell them about the adventure on the Sanctuary of the Earth Mother. As he looks back and openly comment on how difficult it was without Priestess, the duo proudly proclaim she was able to prove herself on her own and how they had helped her. Impressed, Goblin Slayer gave his approval much to the three young women's embarrassment; but quickly Guild Girl and Cow Girl begged for details on Goblin Slayer's adventure. Looking back, Goblin Slayer begins his recollection in his usual way:
"There were Goblins"...
Trivia[]
- When Wizard Boy travels to the "Shire" where the Rhea live, the Rhea kids beginning bugging Wizard Boy to show them "fireworks"; all multiple references to J.R.R Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings"
- Rhea Fighter donning hand me down armor and riding a donkey while jousting is a clear reference to 1605 Spanish novel "Don Quixote" by Miguel de Cervantes. Rhea Fighter even makes reference to the tale herself.
- Many of the chapter titles and over all theme of jousting is a reference to 2001 film "A Knight's Tale", starring the late "Heath Ledger"
- Much like how Light Novel Volume 15 had commentary and criticism on the "Me Too" movement, Volume 16 makes criticisms toward the "Equality vs Equity" & "Cancel Culture" movements.