Chapter 15 - Dangerous Situation

Paul began explaining the plan to the soldiers gathered around. The strategy was straightforward: dig several large holes in the cave and place swords with the tips facing upward at the bottom of each hole. When creatures fell into these traps, the swords would impale them. The holes didn’t need to be too deep—just enough to ensure that when something fell in, it would be pierced. They planned to create three holes: the first would be the shallowest, and the last would be the deepest, starting from the entrance to the large room full of goblins. Their goal was to push the goblins towards the traps. Even if the goblins didn’t die immediately from falling into the holes, they would eventually succumb to bleeding and being crushed under the weight of both soldiers and other goblins.

The biggest challenge was digging the holes. Paul took five soldiers with him. Two were assigned to dig the holes and set up the swords, while the remaining three, including Paul, would keep watch for any goblins. It took them half a day to complete the traps. They covered the holes with branches, leaves, and dirt. Afterward, Paul sharpened and repaired the soldiers’ equipment and cooked a meal for them.

With everything in place, they proceeded into the cave, using planks to cross the holes. After crossing each trap, they moved the planks to the next hole. Once they had crossed all the traps, they were ready for the assault. Paul divided the soldiers into three teams of three, with the remaining soldier accompanying the brothers. Each team was responsible for pushing the goblins towards the narrow entrance where the traps were set. If a team failed, the goblins could encircle them. Paul planned to move between teams to provide assistance if needed.

As soon as they entered the cave, they were spotted. The soldiers quickly broke into smaller groups and moved to the rear of the goblins. They began to fight while slowly driving the goblins towards the exit. Despite being outnumbered, the soldiers managed to push the goblins back. Some goblins fell into the holes, but many still fought fiercely. The sight of their comrades falling into the traps caused the remaining goblins to retreat.

The goblins that fell into the first hole didn’t die immediately. When the hole was full, they began to fall into the second one, which filled up even faster. The goblins, desperate to escape, began running towards the last hole. Some attempted to leap over it, but the gap was too wide. A few managed to walk over the bodies of their fallen comrades, nearly escaping. However, Paul was quick to intervene, blocking their path and fighting alongside the brothers. Eventually, the last of the goblins fell.

The soldiers erupted in a victorious roar that echoed through the cave. Exhausted, they collapsed on the ground. Paul decided to rest as well. Despite having killed over 80 goblins, they treated it like an ordinary day, laughing and talking as if nothing unusual had happened. After resting, Paul and the brothers ventured deeper into the cave to investigate further. The remaining soldiers were tasked with carefully removing the goblin bodies, ensuring no survivors were left among them.

As Paul and the brothers approached the large room, they noticed a green mist on the floor, reaching their ankles. A massive shadow loomed ahead. It was a gigantic goblin, about 3 meters tall, with bulging muscles, a scarred face, and green saliva dripping from its mouth. The saliva turned into the green mist that covered the floor. The goblin wielded a large two-handed sword and wore iron armor. The ground cracked with each step it took. It was clearly the strongest foe Paul had encountered.

The two brothers went pale. Paul quickly tapped them on the back of their heads to snap them out of their fear and instructed them to attack the goblin’s legs and then retreat. He readied his two short swords, believing they would be more effective. As they prepared, the enormous goblin charged at them with surprising speed. Paul barely managed to dodge.

The brothers jumped back and attacked the goblin’s legs, but their strikes barely left a mark. The goblin’s sword narrowly missed their necks. They retreated, and one of the young soldiers, demonstrating bravery, leaped onto the goblin’s back. He struck the goblin’s neck with all his might, but the monster attempted to grab him. Paul was quick and avoided the goblin’s grasp. When the goblin charged at the wall, the young soldier jumped off its back just in time. The impact caused the cave to shake.

Paul realized his attacks were nearly ineffective. Despite hundreds of strikes, he could barely cut the goblin’s skin. As the monster became enraged, Paul was injured by its powerful attacks. His arms were cut in several places, and a particularly forceful blow numbed his hands. Fortunately, the brothers intervened, distracting the goblin long enough for Paul to recover.

Seeing that his sword was ineffective, Paul switched to his daggers. He used all his speed and jumped for the goblin’s neck, but instead aimed for its eyes. With a dagger in each hand, he stabbed the goblin in the right eye. The monster roared in agony, causing Paul to fall to the ground, his ears ringing and bleeding slightly. He was momentarily stunned by the deafening sound.

As Paul struggled to get up, the goblin saw its chance and swung its sword at him. Just as the blade approached his neck, one of the brothers intervened, sacrificing himself to save Paul. Faj lost an arm in the process and was thrown across the room. Shocked, Paul yelled at Naj, “Take your brother to safety! NOW!” Naj quickly grabbed Faj and fled to the exit. Although the monster tried to stop them, Paul managed to cover their escape. Boiling with anger at the cost of Faj’s injury, Paul’s daggers began to glow with flames, sometimes blue, sometimes white. He received a notification but ignored it, focusing solely on the battle.

Using his entire aura, Paul struck at the goblin’s Achilles’ heel, successfully causing the monster to collapse on its knees, crying out in pain. The cave shook with the goblin’s cries. As Paul prepared to deliver the final blow, the goblin’s skin turned black, and it healed its injuries. Startled, Paul jumped back.

The now-black-skinned goblin stood up, healed and more dangerous. When it attacked again, its speed was too great for Paul to fully evade, and he sustained a significant cut on his chest, tearing through his armor. Paul quickly bandaged the wound to stop the bleeding. The monster grinned, seemingly enjoying the fight.

Paul, unsure how to defeat the goblin, continued to attack with his daggers. The monster, now healing from each strike, began to dodge most of Paul’s attacks. Realizing that his daggers alone wouldn’t be enough, Paul decided to use the armguard arrows.

Without noticing the arriving soldiers, Paul used all his speed to dodge the goblin’s attacks and jumped to its face. Covering the goblin’s eyes with his hands, he launched the arrows from his armguards. They pierced the goblin’s eyes and went straight into its brain. The monster fell, lifeless.

The soldiers rushed to Paul’s side, talking animatedly, but he couldn’t hear them over the ringing in his ears. They eventually realized he was deaf and stopped talking. They pointed to another room, and Paul entered to find a small goblin with jewels on it, crying and pleading. Without hesitation, Paul decapitated it with a single stroke.

Paul then ordered the soldiers to gather all the bodies in the main room and rest. He fell asleep while standing, and the soldiers made a makeshift bed for him from available materials before returning to carry the bodies.

When Paul awoke, he saw a huge pile of goblin bodies in the center of the room. Some guards were laughing, while others slept. He noted that, despite losing an arm, Naj was alive. Paul woke everyone up and divided the bodies: each soldier received eight goblins to claim guild points and materials, while Paul took twelve, including the final boss and the smaller goblins.

Paul absorbed the guild points from the bodies and then absorbed the bodies themselves. The soldiers, focused on their own tasks, didn’t notice. When they finally did, they assumed Paul had carried the bodies somewhere and paid it little mind.

Paul then checked his stats, ignoring the updates and focusing only on the final stats and skills.

Skills

Humble Mask –

Aura Shift: Intermediary LVL.5 (19%)

Memos –

Identification: Intermediary LVL.5 (12%)

Creature Tamer: Beginner LVL.7 (0%)

Perception: Intermediary LVL.3 (99%)

Parkour: Intermediary LVL.2 (99%)

Naturas: Beginner LVL.7 (23%)

Detective: Beginner LVL.6 (93%)

Deception: Beginner LVL.6 (23%)

Stealth: Intermediary LVL.1 (84%)

Listening: Intermediary LVL.3 (99%)

Iron Will: Intermediary LVL.9 (99%)

Insight: Intermediary LVL.1 (26%)

Dual Wielding Weapons: Intermediary LVL.3 (49%)

Survivalist –

Crafting: Beginner LVL.8 (20%)

Archery: Beginner LVL.5 (90%)

Bookworm: Intermediary LVL.1 (25%)

Ward: Beginner LVL.2 (15%)

Some skills had leveled up, but Paul noticed that Mana Sight was gone and Aura Shift had broken its previous limit. He checked the skill description:

Aura Shift - Intermediary LVL.5 (19%)

The strength of your aura is now stronger. You can influence a large number of people to perceive you as you wish. The effectiveness of the aura decreases with each additional person influenced. Aura Shift has absorbed Mana Sight, allowing you to see mana when you direct your aura to your eyes.

Special: You can now focus your entire aura into a weapon, increasing its damage and adding some additional properties.

Paul was pleased to have survived and to have gained a significant amount of stats. He was also relieved that none of his soldiers had died, though Naj had suffered a serious injury. Paul noticed that the soldiers showed little concern for the goblin bodies after collecting their guild points.

After leaving the cave, Paul ordered them to stay at the entrance while he prepared to collapse the cave to prevent any creatures from using it again. He absorbed all the goblin bodies and then used Aura Shift on his weapons as he struck the walls on his way out.

Close to the exit, Paul delivered a powerful strike, causing the entire cave to shake. He quickly exited, fearing the cave might collapse on him. Once outside, he saw that the cave was still standing. Frustrated, he channeled all his aura into a single sword and struck the wall near the exit. The entire cave collapsed with a loud noise, and everyone around was enveloped in dust for several minutes.

Satisfied, Paul and the soldiers rested in the sunlight for a few minutes before heading back to Rosan.