"Did you hear that?" someone in the village noticed a sound coming from the forest. "Look! There's something! Something is approaching!"
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!!
A colossal figure emerged from the forest beneath the moonlight!
As the two night guards on duty saw the massive figure, their bodies started to tremble.
"Monster...!"
This was undoubtedly a monster that humanity could never defeat! Did Anyi really return alive after encountering such a creature?!
Before the night guards could even think of escaping, the figure charged directly at the observation tower!
The wooden observation tower splintered apart, sending the guards crashing to the ground.
"The enemy is here!!!"
Those who fell were crushed by the Hobgoblin's wooden club. The loud noise forced the swordsmen and monster hunters out of the break room. At once, they saw the Hobgoblin swatting people away.
This monster was around four meters tall. Even an adult standing next to it looked like a child. Its skin was harsh yet resilient, dark gray in color.
The Hobgoblin boasted strong lower limbs with abundant muscles, and its blue veins displayed the immense strength it held. It possessed almost the same five senses as an ordinary goblin, and its cold eyes scanned from side to side, seeming to count the amount of prey present.
"Hobgoblins! This is a Hobgoblin! All villagers, flee quickly! Escape to the closest town!"
When a monster hunter spotted the beast, his heart skipped a beat, and he instantly shouted loudly. With the equipment they had, they were unable to defeat this brutal monster!
Assel looked at the young swordsmen who had already become weak in their knees: "You children, rush to organize everyone else to flee quickly! Anyi! You, too, should go with them!"
"Yes, sir!" Several young swordsmen darted away almost without hesitation.
However, Anyi remained still.
"The ones who ought to retreat are actually everyone else here, not myself."
"No! All of you, run! We all must exit this area immediately!" A monster hunter gritted his teeth and told the others.
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"No! Others retreat! We'll have to delay it for the villagers to flee first!" Assel insisted.
While they were discussing, the Hobgoblin began to advance, its huge frame bearing an oppressive sense of pressure towards the group. The goal was quite evident: to slay everyone present.
"Spread!!!" Assel bellowed loudly.
In an instant, over 20 people jumped out of the way.
But some didn't have time to react and were caught by the Hobgoblin, thrown into its mouth, and eaten right away!
"Nile!!" Someone shouted the name of the fallen.
Everything happened so suddenly that there was no time to be angry or grief-stricken. There was only limitless dread and desperation!
This monster is not something that mere numbers can conquer.
When the massive wooden club is lifted, whoever is hit only faces one result: death!
"Ruku --!" Suddenly, a loud noise came from not far away.
The Hobgoblin and everyone else present turned their heads toward the source of the sound... Anyi?!
"Roar, roar, roar --!!"
The Hobgoblin ignored the people in front of it and charged at Anyi like a madman.
"Why is it pursuing Anyi?" Assel asked the group of monster hunters.
"Unclear!" one of the monster hunters replied hastily.
"Never mind, he just helped divert the Hobgoblin's attention, so...we...should take this opportunity to retreat now!"
"Retreat!? You want me to leave my son alone!?" Assel instantly grabbed the person who suggested retreating. His eyes went crimson with rage.
"You...!" One monster hunter fell silent.
"Isn't it your specialty to tackle monsters!? He's just 18 years old! Today is his 18th birthday! He diverted the monster to save us, and now you want to abandon him and run away!?" Assel kicked the monster hunter aside, unsheathed his sword, and darted in the direction the Hobgoblin had gone.
Glancing behind Assel, some people chose to flee, while others trembled, uncertain of what to do. Some bit their lips and followed Assel.
"RIGHT! When did we monster hunters need an inexperienced kid to save us!? Isn't it just a Hobgoblin? Let's face it!" Despite their brave words, only a third of them ultimately followed Assel.
From Anyi's departure before they caught up, it was solely less than 2 minutes. Along their route, they spotted houses in the village that had become ruins, indicating that Anyi moved straight through those houses to dodge the attacks.
Seeing that, they could temporarily rest assured; Anyi was definitely not dead, otherwise, the Hobgoblin would have returned to murder the remaining. Soon after, they caught up with Assel.
Surprisingly, Assel did not engage the Hobgoblin. Instead, he stood still on the road, his hands gripping the hilt of his sword, his eyes wide open, staring forward.
'Has Anyi passed away?' Everyone harbored such questions in their minds. Otherwise, Assel would not show such an expression, right?
Still, once they came and stood behind him, they also displayed a similar expression like Assel.
"What's that?"
In their sight was the scene where the Hobgoblin stood in the square, and Anyi was right there with it. The ground was littered with a plethora of diverse weapons, all sharing one similarity: they were all swords.
"Roaring! Roaring! Roaring --!!"
The Hobgoblin let out a thunderous yell, raised its wooden club towards Anyi, and slammed it downward.
Anyi held a diminutive, round shield in one hand while his other hand grasped his sword. Everyone thought Anyi would be smashed to death, but he sidestepped and hurled the round shield into its eyes. Then, Anyi stepped forward and slashed the Hobgoblin's finger with his sword.
"Wait!" Just as someone said that aloud, individuals with much combat expertise immediately perceived that Anyi was in quite a problematic position! At present, all it would take is for the Hobgoblin to sweep its weapon sideways, and there would be no way for Anyi to dodge!