@SearatBreden didn't try to draw much attention to himself, even with a number of females looking at the patrol-turned-hunting team with great interest. Several of the goblin ladies whispered to each other, giggling in response to the words which were said. The chatter was about who'd end up with who in the next few hours or days, along with some rather risque comments about the physique of the males who had brought down hundreds of kilograms of meat, to say nothing of the fur, feathers, claws, bones, beak, and useful organs.
The danger of war was still present, but slaying a beast such as this was a good omen, particularly without any losses on their side. Responding to the commotion, the chief of the tribe had been alerted by several of the tribe's warriors. Eager to make the best of it and to see the spectacle for himself, he left his hut, donned his formal feathered headdress, and took up his sword, one of only a few iron blades in the tribe. Word was that Breden had another iron sword himself and that he had used it to slay the owlbear. Some of the more traditional goblins in the tribe wanted to go back to stone weapons, and a few even insisted that they should return to living in caves as their ancestors had done. Some even questioned the need for farming or keeping herds of animals, as about half of the tribe's food came from hunting and fishing.
Case in point, the owlbear brought in more food in a day than all the meat harvested from the tribe's few livestock had brought in during the past two weeks. Like the fields, the tribe itself owned the sheep, goats, and chickens. Like farming, maintaining those animals was a voluntary job, one taken up by females, the infirm, or by the very old. No self-respecting male goblin of any physical capability wanted to farm or herd animals, knowing that the food would just have to go to the tribe's stores. Meat from a hunt could go to the hunter entirely, even as it was seen as a good deed to donate extra meat or fish to the tribe's granaries.
It was in that spirit of what might be called charity that Breden spoke. "I'm just going to take enough meat from it to last me a couple of days." This was perhaps half a kilogram, given that he was a goblin and didn't need to eat as much as a human. "The rest of my share goes to the tribe!" The reaction to his announcement was mixed. On one hand, there were a number of cheers from the crowd and a gesture of approval from the chief as news of his donation got around. On the other hand, several females who had hoped to get some food from him could only muster a look of disappointment from his proclamation; they'd have to settle on another male who'd help feed them instead.
This had the effect of weeding out the females who were only or mostly looking for food and weren't interested in Breden himself. Those females who were interested in the up-and-coming young male quickly weighed their options. His generosity was nice, but it wouldn't get him into bed with any of them. His goal wasn't to win their attentions by acting charitably, but to reduce the number of females who would go for him, as he didn't want to sleep with a female who'd stop paying attention to him if he didn't bring in a steady supply of meat from the hunt. He had won today, but tomorrow could be a different story. Much better to pursue a female who wanted to bear his younglings than to have his food.
As much as goblins could get romantic from time to time, their relationships came down to food, pleasure, and offspring. In their minds, hunting, fighting, and mating were all part of one system; those males who did well in either or both of the former were sure to have many prospects for the latter. While a pretty female could have any number of male suitors, no one save the chief had as many prospects as a great hunter or warrior, the latter of which would could become chief once the current one passed away or was overthrown.
Keeping this in mind, Breden stuck with the group of males for just a few minutes more as he gently told the females around him to delay their advances for a few minutes more. He also had to remind himself that these particular females were likely to stay interested in him as long as he was strong and not whether or not he brought in food, so even if his words put some of them off today, they'd likely be back tomorrow.
"Good job out there, handsome!"
"You must be
so strong to bring that monster down"
"Hey, honey! Remember me? I'm sorry about the time I said you needed more muscle on those arms. I hope you can forgive me."
"How about we meet in the woods? I know a special little place that-"
"Ladies, please! We still have to cut this thing up, make some offerings, and see who gets what parts. Koglan's called a few, and Griz is getting his share, and while I'm giving up most of my part of the meat, I'd still like to get some other bits of the beast. Just be patient for a little longer, okay?" His momentary fear of losing all the females he had just attracted changed to relief when none of them so much as looked away after he told them to wait. Although none of them would know if they'd bear his children for sure, all of them hope that at least one of their litter would carry his blood. It was a good feeling, to be wanted. Breden only hoped that he wasn't risking it in any way. Of course, he wasn't the only one with his admirers; most of the females in the crowd were busy looking at the rest of the patrol, especially after Breden had made it clear that he wasn't going to feed any of them.
