... As the Humans and Monsters fought their ceaseless war of survival, on one fateful day, a female Monster Lord, an extremely powerful Succubus, and that time's Human Hero rebelled against the wishes of their progenitor gods to annihilate the other.
In their hubris, they used forbidden magic, combined their essences, and spread to the monsters in a ritual that attempted to turn all monsters into civilized, human races.
Unfortunately, it was a partial, successful failure at best, and a new catastrophe at worst.
Instead of transforming all the monsters, they only managed to transform part of them. Moreover, this part resulted in an all-female race that resembled humans yet inherited the lustful desire of succubi for human males. Even worse, they could only give birth to females of their kind, and few human males, even if they bred with their counterpart monster. Some even formed esoteric rituals, monsterfying human women into their own kind!
Many Monster Girls also learned to control their lust and live alongside humans. But many others, with humanlike intelligence and an untamed nature, turned to command their counterpart monsters, using them as cattle, emergency breeders, and minions.
Thus, the Monster Era, otherwise known as the Monster Girl Era, began. Since then, humanity has quickly lost ground, and now only one continent, Dresall, remains in human control, with all other six continents and the fabled Island of Genesis belonging to the Monster Girls. And even in our continent, our last bastion, Monster Girls make up a tenth of the human population! It is a miracle that we were not overrun by now.
Let this be a lesson for future generations that the divine should not be blasphemed.
-An excerpt from a human history book.
After the battle, everyone started gathering the monster materials and tending to the wounded.
While dissecting some goblins, Randall idly thought about the experience.
"I remember that I killed about 36 Goblins, out of about 57, including the downed ones. However, I received lower returns for killing the injured and those who were in the middle of combat. So, stealing kills can work, but it is limited. Is it related to the amount of contribution I give?"
He then thought about his new classes and skills.
"Like usual, the classes merely give me AP. However, the Elite Goblin gave me 2 instead of 1, likely because it was comparable to a human's Uncommon Class. It does make me wonder, however. Do Goblins have Side Classes and specializations as well? Hm... Probably." Randall thought.
And then, he focused on his new abilities.
Elite Goblin Ability - Elite Goblin Virility lvl 10:
An Elite Goblin has superb sexual drive, strength, and performance, and their progeny are superb.
Effects:
Sexual Performance +3
Libido, Semen Quantity, Fecundity, and Progeny Quality +3
Randall honestly didn't know what to say. He wasn't boning any woman, but his sexual performance suddenly improved.
The Elite Goblin ability was also a superior version of the Goblin Virility ability, having x1.5 more benefits. However, the Common Goblin ability had quantity over quality. If he combined the effects, it gave him +16 for effects. He honestly didn't know what this +16 would do to him, however.
Elite Goblin Ability - Elite Goblin Vigor lvl 10:
Elite Goblins have robust health, strong body, and resilience, making them tenacious foes.
Effects:
Raw Strength, General Health, Physical Toughness, and Fatal Wound Survival +1.5
This made Randall grin. Who would say no to these effects? He received a +7.9 improvement.
Elite Goblin Ability - Elite Goblin Stamina lvl 10:
Elite Goblins have impressive stamina, quickly recovering from physical and sexual exertions.
Effects:
Stamina Capacity, Stamina Recovery, Sexual Stamina Capacity, and Sexual Stamina Recovery +1.5
Randall was thankful for the extra stamina... although he wasn't sure about the sexual part. Either way, he received a +3.3 from the bonus.
Elite Goblin Ability - Elite Goblin Leadership lvl 1:
Elite Goblins need big minds and charisma to lead their tribe in times of need to a better future.
Effects:
Charisma +0.3
Leadership +0.3
And this was the cherry on top. It improved his Charisma and Leadership, which did make him a bit more confident... if only a little bit.
Unfortunately, he only got 1 level in this, so the change was insignificant.
Overall, his strength significantly improved!
"A lvl 50 Warrior has a base 35 Body. Additionally, they also get bonuses based on AP allocation. Since they get 2 AP per level, and their abilities are also more advanced, they can theoretically gain 150 Common ability points. And this doesn't include Secondary Classes, which could also grant them more AP, further improving their abilities. In other words... I am not necessarily stronger than an initial E-rank Warrior."
And then, he had a thought, reflecting on the battle.
"Now that I think about it, everyone felt a bit... weak? No, rather, they appeared rigid, as if they couldn't control their own strength, and were full of openings? Why? Weren't they supposed to be stronger than me? Is it because of my abilities...? No, while they hesitated more due to fear of blunt damage, and I had certain advantages due to my high speed and leg strength, it shouldn't be such a big difference... right?"
While he was thinking that, someone approached him from the side.
"Randall, right?" Leofric asked, appearing hesitant.
"Yes. What is it, leader?" Randall asked while cutting off the goblin's testicles.
"Were you hiding your strength this whole time?" Leofric bluntly asked.
"I'm sorry, what?" Randall raised an eyebrow.
"You... the way you fought. Your strength and control... they were certainly E-rank. And yet, you were hunting slimes and rabbits this whole time. So I am asking, did you hide your strength?" Leofric solemnly asked.
"No, leader, I was not. I didn't know I was this strong, really." Randall factually said, cutting out the Goblin's Monster Core.
"Hah... Then, how did you get this strong?" Leofric asked, rubbing his chin.
"I train hard," Randall replied while getting up.
"... How hard? 2 hours a day? 3?" Leofric warily asked.
"Hah? 2 or 3 hours? I have trained about 4-8 hours each day for the past 11 years! I usually only stop when I feel really tired." Randall said with a shocked look.
"Didn't you also train that hard?"
Seeing Randall's shocked look, Leofric understood that Randall wasn't bluffing. He was telling the truth!
"... Never mind..." Leofric woodenly answered and walked away.
"FREAK! I train an hour or two a day at most in weapon drills, and I get laughed at for being diligent! No wonder you were so strong! Are you some elite soldier?!" Leofric inwardly sweated.
Due to the availability of Monster Cores, most people didn't even need to train much. All they needed was to familiarize themselves with their strength. This caused most of them to train an hour a day, maybe two for the diligent.
Only those who were martial fanatics and high-end professionals trained for a long time every day.
Leofric wasn't the only one who realised something was wrong. Randall also figured out something.
"Wait... so, it is because everyone else... doesn't train much? So they can't control their body as well as I do? Or maybe... is it also a hidden effect from Progress Through Training?"
After thinking it over, Randall started to understand just how powerful this seemingly useless ability was.
"Hm... I shouldn't neglect it." He thought and continued dismantling the Goblins.
.
.
.
After they finished looting everything, Leofric spoke.
"Since we already killed their main warband, we must now advance on their hideout and kill the rest of them, uprooting these damnable creatures."
"Yes!" The youths replied.
Leofric then turned to look at Angrebod, who nodded and pointed in a direction.
"It is that way."
"Alright, let's move!" Leofric ordered.
The group began their advance, marching upon their target.
After half an hour of walking and avoiding some traps, they reached their destination.
A faint stench filled the air, like a latrine or a pig pen.
Randall wrinkled his nose, but still stared at the cave with skull marks ahead.
"That is their lair. Entering is dangerous, so we will smoke them out and kill them. Go gather greenwood and green leaves while we keep watch over the entrance." Leofric decisively said.
"Yes!" The youths replied, heading to the surroundings to pick firewood.
Randall also wanted to pick firewood, but Leofric stopped him.
"You don't need to. Stay with us."
Randall was taken aback. Looking around, he saw that the others didn't complain this time. It then dawned on him.
"It's because I am now seen as an equal to the E-rankers and no longer as trash?"
While standing there, contemplating whether this was pragmatism or realism, Leofric spoke to him.
"Randall, when we go back, we will report what happened and recommend you to E-rank. You would need to undergo a promotion test then."
"Okay." Randall nodded.
Leofric smiled and gestured to the other three.
"Let me introduce you. These are my teammates. He is Alfsige, a Rogue and Duelist."
He gestured at a leather-armored, brown-haired man with a short sword and dagger.
"Hello." Alfsige nodded.
"Hi." Randall nodded back.
Leofric then gestured at a short-haired, tough-looking blonde in heavy armor, holding a two-handed hammer.
"This is Bothild, a fellow Warrior and a Heavy Warrior."
"You're not bad, little man!" Bothild grinned.
"Er... thank you." Randall awkwardly said. He was unused to getting complimented.
And then, Leofric gestured at Angrebod, a red-haired, somewhat pretty, lithe woman.
"She is Angrebod, our Ranger and Scout."
"You were a bit too reckless. You could have been injured. Perhaps heavy armor would suit you better." Angrebod said with a serious look.
"Thank you, I'll keep it in mind..." Randall politely replied.
And then, Leofric pointed at himself.
"As for me, I am a Warrior and Sword and Shield Fighter. Nice to be working with you."
He said, extending his hand in a friendly gesture.
"The pleasure is mine." Randall grinned and shook his hand.
It felt good to be acknowledged for a change.
Soon, the youths gathered the wood and leaves and piled them about close to the entrance. They also set wet leather to guide the smoke inside before lighting the fire.
And then... there was a long wait.
Randall used this time to do some passive strength training, making everyone look at him strangely.
"What a weirdo..."
About an hour later...
"Hopefully, they don't have any major second vents or air pockets, or this might take a long while..." Alfsige commented.
Randall nodded in agreement while lifting himself with his index fingers and thumbs, his legs crossed. It would indeed be troublesome if they did.
Luckily, the worst-case scenario didn't happen, as they heard angry noises mixed with coughing.
"Groar! Cough* Cough*"
"Gee! Gee! Cough*"
"Gagya! Cough* Gra!"
And then, one by one, the Goblins scrambled outside, with some trying to put out the fire, while others charged outside, only to get shot and stabbed by the waiting adventurers.
By late noon, the hunt was officially over. Whether the Goblins used animals inside... or humans... everything should have choked to death by the smoke.
Unfortunately, while Randall was eager to kill more, most of the Goblins were killed by the archers, with the rest being ganged up on by the youths, leaving him no room to contribute.
Until finally-
"Alright, we killed them all. Take the Goblins that died near us, harvest them for spoils, and let us return." Leofric spoke.
And so, the hunt came to an end.