“SAAAM!”
Lilian screamed, tears already welling in her eyes.
Fear seized everyone’s hearts.
They weren’t afraid because of the hobgoblin’s level.
From its aura, they could tell it was still Rank 0.
But that wasn’t the problem.
Whenever a wild hobgoblin was encountered, it was usually an evolved monster.
That meant it had already passed through Rank 0 once before.
Technically, they were facing a Rank 1 monster disguised as a Rank 0.
Their scalps tingled as they stared at the blood scattered across the ground.
Before they could even process the death of their friend, a fire qi-coated arrow struck Mia in the shoulder.
“Aaaargh!”
Her scream snapped them back to reality.
Joe, who stood closest to the hobgoblin, saw it swing its axe toward him, bronze metal qi wrapped around the blade.
Reacting instantly, he raised his own axe to block.
Clang!
Though he was slightly stronger than the hobgoblin, the awkward angle of the block sent a painful shock through his arms.
His grip trembled as he staggered backward.
His gaze drifted downward.
Sam’s corpse lay there.
His head had been split clean in two.
Rage surged through him.
“Joe, focus!” Jane shouted.
Her voice remained steady, though panic trembled beneath the surface.
Trent was the only one who managed to keep a clear head.
“Lilian, focus!
Bless us—we need your support!”
His words helped.
Lilian clenched her staff, tears streaming down her face as she began drawing spell circles.
“[Strength Boost], [Speed Boost], [Dexterity Boost], [Calm].”
Normally, these spells took only a few seconds to cast.
But after twenty seconds, she still wasn’t finished.
They couldn’t wait.
The goblins were already charging.
With no time to reconsider, they fell back on Jane’s original plan, though she knew it would need adjustments.
Before the hobgoblin could reach Joe again, Jane slammed her foot against the ground.
Her hairpin glowed.
“[Mud]!”
The earth beneath the hobgoblin softened and turned sticky.
Its charge slowed just enough to give the others a moment to regain their footing.
Connor launched a fireball, striking one of the goblins and illuminating the battlefield.
Mia immediately followed up.
An arrow infused with wind qi streaked toward the hobgoblin.
It blocked the attack with its axe.
Trent charged through the fading flames.
Qi surged through his legs, granting explosive speed, while his sword glowed red-hot.
With a single slash, he cut down the wounded goblin.
Then—
His body felt lighter.
His mind became clearer.
And his qi flowed more smoothly.
Lilian’s blessings had finally taken effect.
Though fear still gripped them, their coordination returned.
Barely.
Trent engaged four goblins at once with Connor providing magical support.
Joe faced the hobgoblin head-on while Mia provided cover fire, her shoulder wound hastily healed by Lilian.
Hidden arrows rained from the trees, but Lilian’s [Guard] spell deflected them.
This was the difference between the civilized races and monsters.
One had refined and perfected the use of energy.
The other relied on crude and inefficient methods.
The goblins burned through their qi reserves rapidly, coating their entire bodies with energy.
The adventurers, on the other hand, localized their qi usage, drastically reducing consumption.
For a brief moment, everything seemed under control.
Jane broke away and sprinted into the forest to deal with the hidden archers.
Just as she reached the trees—
A light arrow shot toward her.
She barely reacted in time.
“[Earth Wall]!”
The projectile exploded against the newly raised barrier.
But Connor wasn’t as fortunate.
A second light arrow pierced straight through his chest.
Then it exploded.
Shock froze the battlefield.
One moment, they had been stabilizing the fight.
The next, their mage was dead.
Before anyone could react, a fireball slammed into Trent’s back.
It didn’t kill him.
But it staggered him.
For a moment, that was enough.
A goblin lunged forward and drove a sword coated in wind qi into the exposed gap near his neck.
Everything happened in less than ten seconds.
Two more dead.
Jane spun toward the source of the attack.
A goblin stood there holding a wooden staff etched with blood-red markings.
The aura surrounding it clearly belonged to a Rank 1 monster.
“A goblin sh—”
She never finished.
A heavy club smashed into her skull.
Her vision blurred.
Just before darkness consumed her, she caught sight of another hobgoblin.
Larger than the first.
Then everything went black.
Only three remained.
The pressure intensified.
Two goblins rushed Lilian.
Two more attacked Joe and Mia.
Mia managed to kill one. Follow the newest chapters on novelping.com.
Then an arrow pierced her thigh.
Lilian was overwhelmed and unable to support anyone else.
Joe held his ground against the hobgoblin.
Until something else emerged.
A golden blur burst from the forest.
Another hobgoblin.
Faster.
Stronger.
Its body glowed with a faint golden light.
A bloodline skill.
Even while carrying a massive club, it moved with terrifying speed.
The chief.
Mia, weakened by blood loss, could barely remain standing.
Lilian’s healing had only slowed the bleeding.
When the chief reached her, a single slap sent her crashing unconscious to the ground.
“Mia!”
Joe turned instinctively.
“Face me, human.”
The hobgoblin he was fighting spoke in the common tongue.
It attacked relentlessly.
Because Joe’s weapon was superior, cracks had already begun spreading across the hobgoblin’s rusty axe.
Behind him, the chief struck Lilian unconscious as well.
“All females have been captured,” the chief said in Vulcan.
Its golden glow was fading as exhaustion began to set in.
“Ruft, stop playing.
The human’s weapon is better than yours.”
The chief turned away.
Goblins emerged from the darkness and dragged the unconscious Jane, Lilian, and Mia deeper into the forest.
Tears streamed down Joe’s face.
The information had been wrong.
A light arrow pierced his chest.
His strength vanished.
The rusty axe fell.
[You killed a Level 10 Human Mortal.]
[100 EXP received.]
[You killed a Level 11 Wolfkin Mortal with assistance.]
[87 EXP received.]
[You have leveled up.]
[Level 5 (14/250)]
“What a nice axe,” Ruft said as he picked up Joe’s weapon, barely paying attention to the notifications.
“Take weapons of dead,” the goblin shaman ordered.
“We feast tonight.”
And so ended the party’s thirteenth mission.
With the death of all the males—
And the capture of all the females.
If you enjoyed this book so far go ahead and add it to your library.
Thank you.