Dappled sunlight illuminated the widening stream as the two walked along the shore. Elizabeth, in shining armor, took the lead, her hand resting on the pommel of her sword still in its scabbard. She was silent as they walked, her blue eyes scanning the tree line, always on alert. Stephen was still getting used to the new axes that Elizabeth had crafted for him the night before, giving them occasional test swings. The silence between them, despite the ambient sounds of the forest, was deafening. Finally, Stephen cleared his throat and called out to Elizabeth.

"So, a Paladin. You were assigned that at birth?" Stephen’s voice broke the tension between them. The awkwardness wasn’t from anything he had done; it was more a byproduct of needing to stay alert to their surroundings. Elizabeth looked over her shoulder at Stephen.

"Yeah, I was trained in this job since birth. Like how you were, if you could remember."

She paused and stopped, turning to face Stephen. Her eyes seemed saddened.

"I'm sorry, I didn’t mean it like that."

She shook her head. Stephen raised an eyebrow, then remembered the story he had weaved about his past. He waved his hands dismissively.

"No worries, it is what it is."

Elizabeth smiled softly and turned back to keep walking, now looking at the stream instead of the tree line. Stephen caught up to her, walking beside her.

"So, your parents must be proud, right?"

Elizabeth couldn’t look at Stephen. She let out a sigh, and minutes of silence ticked by. Stephen must have hit a nerve without intending to.

"I'm sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you."

Elizabeth stopped him with a simple hand gesture. She looked over at Stephen, her eyes a little misty.

"They were great parents. They raised me, taught me how to fight, how to heal, how to control the Job’s compulsions."

She continued, stopping to look at the stream moving slowly along. The sunlight glistened off the clear water like stars on its surface.

"They were killed while traveling to the capital. Their caravan was ambushed by a group of bandits. I was away at the cathedral when I received the news."

She paused in her story, then turned back to Stephen, forcing a smile behind her helmet.

"The news triggered my compulsion to have a family. It’s why I can come on a little strong."

She giggled and gave Stephen a playful slap on the butt, with a little pinch. Then she turned and continued walking along the stream’s shore. Stephen processed her story, then sped up to catch up with her. Elizabeth looked at him from the corner of her eye, then back to the tree line.

"We have a few days’ travel to get to the nearest town."

Elizabeth spoke up again, pointing toward an area to the north.

"Great, hopefully I can get some—"

Again, Elizabeth interrupted him with a single hand gesture. There was rustling in the bushes alongside them. That feeling of being watched caused the hair on Stephen’s neck to stand on end. His eyes scanned the tree line where Elizabeth was looking. It was then that four figures moved out of the tree line. They were small humanoids in stature, but their skin was dark green with speckles of brown. Their ears were elongated and floppy. The sclera of their eyes was yellow, and their pupils red. If Stephen didn’t know better, he would have called them Goblins. He focused on the closest one.

Goblin - Level 4 HP: ??

Well, it seems some things don’t need to be recreated, Stephen guessed. The Goblins spoke in gibberish, squawking and grunting to each other. One pointed at the pair, and the four Goblins turned and smiled a sharp, toothy grin. Elizabeth pushed Stephen back.

"Stay back, I can handle these vermin."

But Stephen felt his blood begin to boil. An urge to charge headlong at the Goblins surged within him. His leg muscles tensed, and he felt an itch to bolt straight at them. Elizabeth shot him a cold stare, her cheerful demeanor gone in an instant. Her voice came out cold and commanding.

"Stay back."

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Stephen shot her a look, a smile forming on his face. His body moved on its own.

"No."

He bolted forward, breaking past Elizabeth, axes at the ready. Elizabeth sighed and rushed to join him. The Goblins screeched and rushed at Stephen. One jumped into the air. Stephen parried a dagger thrust at his side, sliding an axe to deflect it and sending the crude weapon flying into the air. Just as a dagger came down toward Stephen’s shoulder, it was stopped by a glint of blue—a scabbard blocked the critical strike and shoved the Goblin back, who landed on its feet with a splash.

"If you’re going to fight, then we fight together. We are a party."

Stephen looked over his shoulder to see Elizabeth standing with her scabbard raised. She slowly pulled her blade free, the steel flashing in the sunlight. The Goblins circled, chuckling to themselves. In an instant, they launched an attack, lunging forward. Stephen ducked and drew an arcing slash. The Goblin managed to block the swing with a dagger, which went flying up about ten feet into the air. It screamed, its eyes wide as it ascended. A second Goblin came in and slashed into Stephen’s arm. Stephen lessened the blow by turning his body, but he wasn’t fast enough. Pain shot through his arm, and he kicked the Goblin back.

Elizabeth slammed her shoulder into another Goblin, and with precision and swiftness, she whipped her sword into a third Goblin. The struck Goblin stumbled back, bleeding. The one she had shoulder-slammed skipped across the water like a flat stone. Elizabeth steadied herself, catching her breath and calming her nerves.

There was a splash of water, then bubbling blood as the Goblin that was sent skyward by Stephen’s attack crashed into the stream, hitting a shallow point and crushing on impact. Elizabeth was poised like a knight, but Stephen... Stephen let out a laughing roar as he charged forward. The Goblin he was fighting cut into Stephen’s flesh with a flurry of blows, but Stephen’s Adrenaline skill seemed to be absorbing the damage, allowing him not to slow down. Stephen kicked the Goblin in the gut, lifting it into the air, then sent his axe crashing into the side of the Goblin’s neck, causing its body to spin in one direction and its head to be severed and spin in the opposite.

Elizabeth kicked up water into a Goblin’s face, and as the water fell, her blade separated the water and drove hilt-deep into the chest of the Goblin. The Goblin she had kicked like a stone was beginning to rise. It darted back, jumping up and driving its dagger down, but before it could land a blow, there were two flashes of steel. Elizabeth was now facing the Goblin as it sprayed blood and fell, creating two splashes.

Goblin Hunting Level Increased, you can now see Goblin HP Skill Activated - Overcome Skill Level Up - Overcome Would you like to loot the Goblin? Would you like to loot the Goblin? Would you like to loot the Goblin? Would you like to loot the Goblin?

Stephen breathed deeply as his blood began to cool. The wounds on his body were shallow, but there were enough of them that it would take a little while to heal. He wished that the messages wouldn’t be so constant, but he figured without them, he might actually forget to loot the bodies. He walked over to the Goblins and began to loot them. He didn’t gain much—just some crude daggers. Then he held his hand out over a Goblin corpse.

Skill Activated - Glitch Glitch Failed

Damn, Stephen thought to himself as he moved to the next Goblin. He didn’t even notice Elizabeth watching him from a distance. He attempted again, and again the skill failed. He moved to the next Goblin.

"What are you doing?"

Elizabeth called out as she approached. Stephen looked over at her and paused.

"Using my skill, Glitch. Why?"

Elizabeth stopped and tilted her head. She removed her helmet, and her face was dripping with sweat. Her bangs were plastered to her forehead.

"Glitch?"

Stephen raised an eyebrow and looked at her.

"It lets me absorb aspects of defeated enemies."

Elizabeth seemed confused. She shook her head in disbelief.

"I’ve never heard of that skill before. It’s not something I’ve heard of. Is it a Barbarian thing?"

Stephen looked back at the Goblin and attempted again. And again it failed. He let out a defeated sigh and made his way past Elizabeth to the last Goblin.

"No, it’s from my second Job, Glitched."

He spoke as he moved by. He stood over the last Goblin and held his breath as he activated the skill one final time.

Glitch Successful, Dexterity +2 Skill Level Up - Glitch

Elizabeth walked beside him, looked down at the Goblin, and then at Stephen.

"I don’t see a second Job listed, only Barbarian."

Stephen stopped and looked up, confused. She couldn’t see the Glitched Job? That was odd. He was able to see her Job listing. He figured only the primary Job displayed. He hadn’t thought to even mention it before.

"Is it one of those hidden Jobs I’ve heard about?"

Elizabeth broke his concentration, causing him to look up at her as he washed his axes clean in the stream. Hidden Job? He recalled seeing that on the first display when he was loading into the world. At first, he thought nothing of it. Now, with Elizabeth’s reaction, it seemed to take on a new significance.

"Yeah, I think it is."

Elizabeth looked cheerful when he said that.

"Wow, my first party member has a hidden job! I say it was definitely fate we met!" She clapped a gauntleted hand on Stephen’s back. She smiled and put her helmet back on.

"Well, if you’re all done, these Goblins shouldn’t be here. That means there’s a nest nearby."

She turned her armored head toward Stephen, her tone shifting to one of serious intent.

"Care for a side quest?"

Stephen paused for a moment, processing the offer. His instinct was to press forward to find his family, but something in the way Elizabeth framed it made him reconsider. If there was a nest nearby, it could be a bigger problem later on. Besides, he was beginning to understand that working with Elizabeth, despite her quirks, was his best option for survival.

"Yeah, let’s do it."

He nodded, his grip tightening around the axes in his hands. Elizabeth’s eyes gleamed behind her helmet as she turned toward the direction the Goblins had come from.