[Smag’s POV]

After Axi gets her mana core, it’s time to distribute Earth and Air mana cores. There are no special goblins remaining, but since a core can be reclaimed, I don’t mind giving them to my best hobs. I could also use them to experiment with runes, but both earth and air mana are plentiful, so there’s no point. I gave both cores to veterans of Fikeral.

To my surprise, the hobgoblin trying to assimilate the Earth Core dies. I observe the process to hopefully figure out something else about magic. I notice the earth mana fights with his vitality mana rather than merging together. Hobgoblin dies in convulsions. I recover the core, which seems a bit strained. I think I will wait a bit before attempting another bonding.

The second hobgoblin, which I think deserves a name, is fine. Let’s go with Windy. Going by the base mana types, I think the air is most useless, but maybe I will be proved wrong. I don’t think just regular base air mana is capable of manipulating pressure or removing oxygen. That’s assuming there’s even oxygen in the air. Nobody here has a brain, so maybe we don’t need oxygen but instead some mana from the air. We still breathe, so something is needed.

Regardless, I go back to creating a soul scalpel. Meanwhile, Axi picked her path. She went for the epic Fireaxe Goblin option. She had another option: Prodigy Fire Mage. There were no options or even mention of having two mana types as a monster, and the system instead treated her Earth mana skills as regular magic skills, assuming she is just a prodigy mage for having so many decent rarity skills.

Axi continues to grind, wanting to become a hobgoblin again. We all mostly train and store meat. Hedgehogs are slowly starting to hibernate, making it easier to kill them but harder to find them.

[Adam’s POV]

We march to the Streamcreak. The village is one whole day away. We still have some food, and it’s not cold yet. Not long before dusk, we lay our eyes on Streamcreak or rather, its ruins. It’s a somber sight. Annie grips my hand strongly. My sister, Maia, takes my second hand.

“It’s fine. I mean, the raiders should have left already. Just like with us. Nothing is burning, at least.”

“No! Mom! Dad!” The girl, originally from this village, loses her cool and starts running to the village. No one stops her. We go after her. Maybe there will be food there? Will there be any survivors?

We find over twenty people staying in one of the least destroyed houses. There are mostly children, but there are also a few older girls. No elders. The girl from earlier is crying while being consoled half-heartedly by another girl. This is a mess.

We learn that riders came here as well. Their situation is practically the same as ours. They just had less time to escape the village than us. Did someone warn us? Maybe one of the hunters noticed the raiders. This village wasn't that lucky. They tell us raiders have been killing everyone. Those who escaped did so by evading rampaging soldiers. They ran to the forest near the village while their parents tried to fight raiders, just so their children had a few more seconds.

Why? Why is the world like this? I sigh. This won’t help me. I need to take care of Annie and Maia. Especially Maia. She is just a kid.

The next day, our food situation is even worse. We helped dig rubble for maybe more food, but at best we just dug enough to even out. Since it’s not only our village that has been hit, it’s safe to assume there are more villages like ours. Only a town with a wall can defend itself. Roheb.

We decide to go there. It’s close to the Great Forest, so we can always just bypass it, but we are hoping to find work there. There are only fifty of us; surely the mayor would take in some poor refugees. We can work.

There’s not enough food for all of us, but it’s autumn, and there are fruits here and there. Sure, it’s late autumn, so there aren't enough of them, but we just need to get to the Roheb. We ration food as well.

After two days, it’s obvious it’s not enough. There are children with us, and the journey will take around two weeks. Adults could make it in a week, but we don’t have horses, or even better, horses with carts.

“We can’t just stop eating!”

“You are an idiot. Sure, let’s eat all food now, then die from starvation later.”

“You are the idiot. We just need to march faster.”

We start arguing. I don’t take part. It just seems so pointless. Now or later, it’s still the same amount of food. We are still going to starve. Just keep marching.

“My feet hurt.” Maia complains.

“I know.” My feet hurts the same. I’m sure most people here have the same problem. “Here. I will carry you for a bit.” I kneel and take her on my back. I won’t be able to walk like than for long. Not without food, but just a bit is fine. Just a bit.

Two days later, some children get a fever. It’s not that strange, now that I think about it. It’s late autumn. Days are still somehow warm, but nights are cold. We just sleep covered in cloaks. I may actually get sick myself. Maybe I’m already sick. I’m tired. And hungry.

Disease slows us down even more. Adults and older kids, that is, the fastest among us, take turns scouting woods for food. The Great Forest is technically way farther, but in truth, trees cover most of our region. My grandpa has often told me stories about the founding of our village. He had been only a boy back then who traveled to this region with his parents. The land here is free. You just need to tame it and defend against monsters.

We weren’t dividing the group before because a monster could theoretically attack us at any time. You should always take precautions against 1st tier monsters, which are not rare around here. They are rather easy to kill for a farmer with a weapon, or at least a tool. We have some sickles and rakes, so it should be fine, I think. Actually, some are probably hoping to find a monster. We would eat it then.

Another two days later, two children die. Few others can really walk on their own. Maia is fine for now, but I worry.

“We should eat them.” Someone says. I shudder. I hadn’t even considered something like that. How can he?

“No! They are only kids!”

“They WERE kids! Now it’s only meat.” A quarrel follows until Nicole speaks.

“They died of disease. You want to eat them? Go ahead, but don’t return to our group. We don’t want you to infect us.”

We leave the bodies by the road. I would rather bury them, but I don’t have strength myself. I doubt anyone does. We march ahead. It should be just another week. We can make it. I can make it. My sister can make it. Annie can make it.

The next day, another kid dies.

And another.

And three others.

Two weeks have passed, but we are still not at Roheb. Fortunately, Roheb is not an isle in the middle of nowhere. There are farms around it, and some farmers help us a bit. Three days later, we arrive. Roheb. I know it’s not a very impressive town; it's just another base for adventurers close to the Great Forest. For me, though, it’s impressive. The walls are big. I never saw something like that in my life. Annie and Maia are equally impressed.

We try to enter, but guards stop us. Nicole enters with Tom, a guy I know from my village. They leave the walls after an hour with a small group, led by a man in rich clothes.

“I understand that you have been forced to leave your homes due to Tangidish riders and marauders.” He starts speaking loudly so everyone can hear him. “I’m sorry to say I can’t let you stay in my town, but worry not!” He shouts, silencing discontent. “I will provide you some food and other items so you can reach the next town. You aren’t only refugees. I have already received a number of people and can’t take in more, or we will all starve in the winter.”

He motions to his guards, and I see two carts with food and clothes leaving the walls. “I can’t give you horses, but you can take carts, if you want.”

Can we go to another town? Probably. But how many of us will reach it? I take another look at the guards. We can’t fight them.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Don’t you have adventurers and hunters? Can you get monster meat?” Gent asks.

“We do, but most of them are here for the dungeon, not for the forest. Our food situation is not very good. Honestly, my citizens will be hungry this winter as well. I can’t spare more food.”

“Can you give us some weapons? If your adventurers won’t hunt, maybe we can,” I ask, surprising myself.

“I would advise against it, but I won’t stop you. Fine, I will give you a few weapons.” He gives orders to his guards, and a few minutes later we get a few spears, bows, and even a sword. All are in poor condition, but I’m not going to complain.

“The local forest is dominated by hedgehogs. They hibernate in the winter, so you may be able to hunt a few, but I advise you to get a few shields. I gave you a few tools, so you should be able to make a few.”

We stay a day and then leave with one cart. Going to the next town is not popular. For all we know, the situation there may be the same or even worse. Who knows how far those riders went? So, we go to the forest. We have some weapons. This gives us courage but forces us to abandon the cart.

We can’t really stay on the road. The riders should still be somewhere. For all we know, they will be back. They won’t go into the monster-infested forest, or at least we think so. The forest should give us protection from them while instead giving us monsters. For better or worse,.

Two days pass. We still have some food. Me and a few more boys have been swiping the area near our group, hoping to find prey or to find a predator before it finds us. We found a few rabbits and a deer, but all of them escaped. We are not fast enough to pursue them, and our archers missed. That has to change. For now, we need to find a place to settle down. Winter is coming, and we need some shelter.

We found a hedgehog, but the consensus was to leave it alone. The governor said hedgehogs shot spines. We disassembled the cart but haven't yet made shields out of the planks. Fighting now is simply too dangerous. We may be forced to do so soon, though. I want Annie and Maia to be far from the fight.

“Hello.” We hear a voice. Everyone tenses. An archer woman comes out from behind a tree.

“Who are you?” Someone shouts.

“Are you the leader of this group? I may be able to help," the woman says to Nicole.

“Yes.” Nicole responds.

“How are you here?”

Nicole starts to explain, even describing their poor situation and the fact that they can’t defend themselves. Something wrong. When I look at the woman, I feel something is not right with her. Like she is a bad person. Why is Nicole so open? She could be a bandit. They may want to enslave us. Anything can happen.

Someone hits Nicole lightly. She shivers. “You…”

“Don’t worry, I will help you.” The woman says, but looking at Nicole, she is pale now. I shiver. Social perks. They are not very forceful, and the whole point is often to notice them. After that you can just shrug their effect. What if that woman wants to attack? Nicole just told her our weak points. Nobody answers the woman, but the tension is in the air.

“I really meant it. I know a place that you can settle in for now. I can maybe help you with food.”

“Really?” Nicole asks.

“Yes. Obviously not for free; I will expect you to repay me later, but I think it’s fine, is it?”

That actually reassures some people. Someone shrieks. “Hobgoblin!” I look at the girl, who is pointing at something in the forest. I take a look as well, and there’s a monster there. I grip my spear tighter.

“No need to worry. They are with me." The woman says, much to everyone's consternation. She then speaks in some strange language, and a few hobgoblins come to her. I shiver. Can we fight a hobgoblin? Maybe. To fight something one whole tier higher, three fighters are required. So we may have a chance with one hobgoblin. It's impossible to fight multiple of them.

“Come. Follow me.” The woman says.

“Witch,” someone whispers. Can I escape? Unlikely. We start to follow, hoping the woman won’t lead us to the sacrificial site. We have no other viable choice.

Three hours later, we stop near a stream in a clearing.

“This place should be fine for you. By the way, I’m Anastasia. Nice to meet you.” She says. “I need to go bring supplies. We can negotiate properly after I’m back.” She leaves after, but all of us stay vigilant. Goblins leave with her.

“Let’s run.”

“Don’t be an idiot. This could be a test.”

“It doesn’t matter.” I say. “We can’t really fight them. We may not even be able to survive on our own.” I say, but only after saying that do I feel how true my words are.

We start unpacking.

[Smag’s POV]

“Ok. Once again.”

I observe as Axi creates another fireball, or at least tries. The ball flies for a dozen meters and explodes on the ground.

“I got the skill!” She shouts and jumps up in joy.

“Finally.” I sigh. Took you long enough.

“I’m not as good at manipulating mana as you.” She shrugs. “The skill is uncommon.”

I nod. “This makes sense. It’s based on a basic mana type. What about your two other skills?” I ask about the skills Axi got from picking a path.

“Watch”. She jumps forward, and fire gushes from beneath her feet. “This is too tiring.”

“I don’t think this skill is meant for continued use. Just use it in bursts for rapid change of direction.” The skill is called Fire Dash and is of Very Rare rarity. Axi got two Very Rare skills from her Epic path evolution.

“I thought it would be more useful.” Axi grimaces.

“It’s easier when you have readily available element. Earth Mages are probably the strongest in an environment like ours. There is not much natural fire around.” Fire Dash works like a rocket, but fuel is expensive and the speed of fire is low. Combining this skill with air spells would increase its power a lot, or maybe decrease its mana cost. Unfortunately, that’s not available for monsters.

Axi sighs. “So, should I concentrate on Firestrike skill?” That’s the second skill Axi got. It makes fire explode from her ax each time she hits something. The skill actually showed me something I hadn’t considered before. Normally, you can’t attack someone with mana since your opponent is likely to deploy a mana shield. The shield is not protecting against non-mana attacks, though, so an ax can easily pierce through it.

This is the same as what the 2nd tier human did to my arm near Fikeral.

This means Axi can smuggle fire mana inside her ax. The skill is annoying, but flames of basic fire mana are not hot enough to kill someone instantly. However, she can reliably cause burns with it, wearing her opponent down. You can do the trick even without a specific skill, but the amount of infused mana is not that much. Axi's skill allows for bursts of mana upon contact.

“You should level up both skills. Level up Fireball as well. I think upgrading your Ax Fighting to a higher rarity would help you the most. Similarly with mana skills.”

“I have an idea about that. I’m going to make myself an ax with a spike, so it can function as a spear as well, rather than merge ax and spear fighting skills.”

“Won’t it be too heavy to use it reliably as a spear?”

“I don’t care, really. I can always drop the skill and re-level it.” She shrugs. “Besides, I only picked Spear Fighting since my axes weren’t very reliable. Now, I don’t need that skill. What about you?”

“I’m low on Experience Points. Reaching the 3rd tier in the 1st tier zone is going to be long haul. Between cycling skills and experimenting, I don’t have much time. I’m yet to even fill up my skill list.”

“Really? My fighting and crafting skill lists are full. With Fireball I have eight magic skills.”

“Hey!” I hear Anastasia shouting.

“What’s up? A problem?”

“I found a group of people in the forest not far from us!”

“Shit!” I panic. “How strong are they?”

“Don’t worry. They are refugees. Completely harmless.”

I sigh in relief. “Good. Axi, grab your weapon. Let’s get rid of them quickly.”