The presence of the [Goblin King] instills a primal fear in me. It numbs my limbs and loosens my grip on my scimitar, but my near-death experience and the grim sight of the decapitated head being thrown brings me back into focus. We need to get weapons to protect ourselves. Dozens of humans and goblins are fighting about 50 feet in front of me, to the East. It's the same direction as the plains that I nearly died in. The stench of burning flesh and wood fills my nose and the cries of battle fill my ears. A few goblins occasionally break through the site of battle in order to terrorize anyone they can find but there are luckily none coming toward us.
A few groups of bodies lie in the midst of battle. I spot a group of 8 corpses with enough weapons for my group. Two men, one woman and 5 goblins. There are only four weapons, two shortswords, a spear and a dagger, all from the humans. It seems like it's rare for the goblins to wield any weapons. I make my way towards the group of corpses, stepping in front of James, and the group follows. I try my best to keep my eyes away from the giant goblin standing at the back. I think it has some sort of skill that's effecting me. We're almost at the group of corpses, about 10 feet away, before a group of three goblins break away from the battle and rush towards us. They're hideous creatures. All of their features are sharp and offensive. Their jaws, ears, nose and teeth stick out with jagged points along with sharp, menacing claws on their hands. They're about three feet tall and their skin has a rough leathery texture with a dark green coloring. Their faces are marred by scars and warts. One picks up the dagger, caked in goblin blood and brandishes it at us. They chuckle and growl uncontrollably at us, their eyes shining with an eerie excitement and anticipation. Bloodlust.
[Goblin, Level 6, F Rank]
[Goblin, Level 4, F Rank]
[Goblin, Level 5, F Rank]
The highest level goblin, the one with the dagger, charges at me first. I'm immediately drawn into focus as the threat of death looms over my head. All of my senses are heightened, my mind more focused than it has ever been, my body ready. I notice how my shirt hangs from my skin, thick and solid due to its leather make-up. It's uncomfortable, but allows for complete freedom of movement. It has sleeves extending to my arms, which could be helpful against a slashing attack. My pants stick to my legs, tight and restraining, also made of leather. I'm not yet wearing shoes, a dire oversight that only briefly flashes in my mind. A subtle wind blows in from the North, caressing my skin. It's cold, sending a gentle shiver down my skin. My fear subsides, replaced by anticipation, excitement and determination. The thick, persistent feeling of anticipation settles in my stomach, fighting against a bold determination in my chest as I focus on the goblin. An electric excitement courses through my shoulders, connecting in my neck and filling my head. I feel adrenaline begin to pump through my veins along with subtle traces of mana. The scent of burning flesh carves its way into my mind, the screams of anger, terror and death harmonizing with the clashing of metal and rending of flesh.
I take it all in as the goblin in front of me lashes out with its dagger, aiming towards the seam between my pants and my shirt. I raise my left arm to block the slash but the goblin's abnormal strength forces the dagger through the leather. The strike is halted, though, the blade of the dagger stuck between my flesh and the leather of my shirt. My arm buckles under the strength of the goblin, smashing against my abdomen. With a short shout, I pull my scimitar back and pierce towards the goblin. It only begins to react as the hefty scimitar pierces clean through its chest. The sound of metal crushing bone and flesh breaking sounds out. I watch as the life fades from the goblin's eyes, a deep sense of superiority and pride filling my chest. I kick its lifeless body, ripping my scimitar from its chest.
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[You have killed a Goblin, Level 6, F Rank]
Another system window opens, but it automatically closes as the other to goblins approach.
The other two goblins growl and dash towards me, clearly not expecting such a quick death. James takes a step in front of me and throws a rough punch towards the goblin on the left. It makes contact with the monster's forehead. His fist lands at an awkward angle, and the sound of bone cracking snaps through the air. He stumbles back and screams while the goblin lunges forward, clearly not fazed by the attack. The goblin grabs James' arm and digs a claw into his wrist, wrenching it down the length of his forearm, cutting through flesh and leather. Luckily, Sophia launches a ball of what I assume to be mana towards the goblin. It pierces the eye of the goblin with shocking speed and accuracy, making it stumble backwards and let go of James. Eric capitalizes on this and kicks the leg of the goblin, tripping it before he begins to ruthlessly kick it. Sophia joins in, creating a similar scene to the death of the hobgoblin.
Meanwhile, I take a few steps to the side to draw the other goblin's attention away. The sound of James' bones cracking briefly draws my attention, but I quickly look back towards the goblin in front of me, only to jolt back in surprise. In my short moment of distraction, the goblin leapt up towards me and is now striking at my face with its right claw. I'm not able to dodge in time, and its right hand tears into my cheek. It quickly grabs my head with its other hand and stands on my shoulders before moving its right hand, piercing into my eye. I instinctually grab it and wrench it back, pulling its claw out of my eye along with my eyeball. I scream as the searing hot pain takes control of my mind, but I'm barely able to refocus thanks to the small amount of mana in my blood. I slam the goblin down before my arm gives out, its claws opening new wounds on my left arm. I quickly put my left knee on top of the goblin and swinging my scimitar down, cutting its head in two.
[You have killed a Goblin, Level 5, F Rank]
I set the scimitar down and tear the dagger out of my left arm before holding my hand over my left eye. The pain is unbearable, my body tensing up and my thoughts fragmenting, but I'm still able to use [Recover]. The pain of my skill is much, much worse. I quickly exceed my pain tolerance limit, but the mana in my veins keeps me awake. The pain is incomprehensible. It feels like the world is splitting in half, like my head is being shredded in to dozens of pieces. After an amount of time I'm not able to decipher, the skill stops. A vicious headache permeates throughout my being but the pain is much more manageable. I've lost sight in my left eye. I grab my scimitar and try to stand up but my left leg buckles under my weight. I reflexively hold out my left hand to stop my fall, the impact causing a sharp pain to shoot through my body. I use the tip of the scimitar to push myself upright and take a few breaths before standing up. I succeed this time, but my legs are shaking uncontrollably. I turn to my left and see James knelt over holding his left arm. I slowly walk over and drop my scimitar before grabbing his left arm. I accidentally squeeze with too much force, causing him to recoil, but I roughly pull him back, eliciting a scream from him. I use [Recover] on him. It takes a moment to activate, but once it does, he tries to squirm out of my grasp. Eric and Sophia hold him, realizing what I'm trying to do. After a few exhausting moments, the wound on his arm is sealed. I let go of him and pick my scimitar back up, hobbling over to pick up the dagger that was stuck in my arm. I start to make my way towards the West, away from the battle, but James and Sophia intercept me. They put their arms under mine and help me walk. I fade in and out of consciousness. I don't remember much, but I know that we walked for a while. And that everyone survived. The last thing I remember before falling asleep is being set down in a grassy field next to a campfire.