Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Justyn’s lungs burned like fire. He took in a deep breath, inhaling the smoldering smoke before hacking it out in a coughing fit. Stumbling and staggering, the [Receptionist] pulled himself out of the collapsed remains of the Adventurer’s Guild. He looked around and saw nothing but ash and blood in the wreckage of the building.

How could this have happened so quickly? Just an hour ago, the Adventurer’s Guild was brimming with activity like any ordinary day. But now, it was brought to ruin. And it wasn’t just the guild itself.

Half of Windrip had been burned to the ground. Columns of smoke and ash rose to the darkened sky as terrible fires raged throughout the city. Charred corpses lay scattered throughout the rubble, and small shadows scurried about followed by twisted giggles.

Justyn gritted his teeth as he swept his gaze over his city. He was angry. He was upset that this could’ve happened. But he was just a [Receptionist]. He couldn’t do anything about it. He had to get out of here— somehow get the news to Guildmaster Evan. He turned around, limping his way through the streets of Windrip— then paused.

And there it was. The culprit behind this. The one who had laid Windrip to ruin.

Glutaz the Goblin Lord.

Justyn’s eyes grew wide at the sight of the hulking green monster. It was a mass of rippling muscles and sturdy fat. Standing at ten feet tall, it had a hunched back, and scraps of metal armor covered bits of its body. It raised a giant axe, looking down at a groaning figure with its beady crimson eyes.

“That’s...?” the [Receptionist] gasped.

Garron the Steel Tank raised a large shield wall as he faced down the Goblin Lord. He rasped, looking up weakly as he gritted his teeth.

“Pointess,” Glutaz said as it swung down with the axe.

“[Iron Will]!” Garron yelled, forcefully raising his shield with whatever strength he could muster.

There was a flash. The axe impacted the surface of his shield, sending sparks flying into the air. Garron stumbled back, but somehow managed to hold his footing. He stepped forward, thrusting forward with a short sword.

“And— [Piercing Blast]!”

His weapon shone as its blade extended and shot out in a cone of golden light. The attack consumed Glutaz. The Goblin Lord flinched—

And slashed through the beam. He sheared the attack in half with ease, striking the ground. Garron flew back from the shockwave of the hit. His shield went flying as he crashed right ahead of where Justyn stood.

The [Receptionist] squeaked, scurrying to hide behind some rubble. Garron tried to force himself back up, but a group of scurrying shadows leapt up to him from behind. Goblins— each the size of a child— crashed into him as they laughed maniacally.

Justyn watched as the Steel Tank curled up into a ball, being assailed from all sides by those little green creatures. They tore through Garron’s armor, stabbing him and drawing blood as he screamed in pain.

“That is enough, my children,” it said as it loomed over Garron.

The goblins backed away as Glutaz took a step forward. The Steel Tank tried to get back to his feet, but failed as his knees gave out under him. The goblins looked up in confusion.

“Human hurt goblin!”

“Goblin hurt human!”

“Human weak! Human suffer!”

They spoke in broken sentences— barely parsable language. Only Glutaz seemed to speak in a comprehensible tongue. He chuckled as he hefted his axe over his shoulders.

“Do you taste it?” it asked, leaning over the adventurer. “You who have hunted my people for sport and leisure— who have stained your hands with the blood of my kin.”

Garron winced, picked up by Glutaz. The Goblin Lord grinned savagely as it held the head of the Steel Tank in the palm of its left hand.

“It is sweet. It is savory. It is... revenge.”

Glutaz licked its lips before letting go of Garron. He collapsed limply to the floor, and the Goblin Lord raised its axe. Justyn backed up, cowering in fear.

Should he do something? He thought he should— but he was just a [Receptionist]! There was no way he could stop the Goblin Lord even if he wanted to! He paused, catching a glimpse of a crossbow by his feet. And he hesitated.

Garron looked up, meeting Glutaz’s gaze. He opened his mouth weakly—

“Fuck you,” he spat.

The Goblin Lord just laughed. “If those are our final words, then so be it. Goodbye.”

And Glutaz swung down. Justyn flinched. The [Receptionist] slammed his eyes shut as the Goblin Lord brought its great axe at the B-ranked adventurer. He waited for the loud thud. To hear Garron’s body collapse on the ground, lifeless.

But there was only the sound of the axe crashing into the earth unimpeded. Justyn blinked, opening his eyes. He looked up to see Glutaz frowning and pulling its weapon from the ground.

“Oho, another human joins the fray.” The Goblin Lord raised its head.

The [Receptionist] paused, only to leap back in shock as a figure landed right before him.

“Wait, wha— who? How?” He stared at the hooden woman as she dropped Garron at Justyn’s feet.

“You’re a [Receptionist], aren’t you? You should be able to cast [Minor Heal]. Tend to his wounds.” The hooden woman spoke simply.

Justyn blinked a few times, glancing between her and Glutaz. The Goblin Lord harrumphed as it looked his way. He shrank back.

“But... but... but—”

“I will deal with the Goblin Lord. So hurry up and save Garron before it’s too late.” Starting forward, the hooded woman drew a long sword and pointed the blade at the Goblin Lord.

The [Receptionist] narrowed his eyes. Finally, he recognized her. His eyes grew wide as he exclaimed. “Wait— you’re the woman from the guild just an hour ago, aren’t you?”

She nodded in response. “I am.”

Glutaz the Goblin Lord raised a brow as the hooded woman walked forward. She raised a hand, ripping the hood off her head. It tilted its head at her.

“Do you think you can defeat me, human?” it asked, laughing.

Justyn watched in shock as her hood went flying, revealing locks of golden hair. White eyes. Pale skin. She wore a light leather armor that shimmered with protective enchantments

“I am Noele the Noble Spellsword,” she said as she raised her sword. “B-ranked adventurer. I will stop you, Goblin Lord.”

—--

“A B-ranked adventurer?” Glutaz the Goblin Lord wanted to laugh. He looked past the blonde girl towards a bleeding man lying on the rubble. “You think you can defeat me, and you’re just a B-ranked adventurer? Ask Garron how that went for him, human.”

Noele didn’t visibly react. She stood unwaveringly in the face of the giant Goblin. It was the other human man who spoke up in a panic.

“T-that’s not enough! We have to get out of here!” he said as he scrambled to his feet.

She shook her head. “We need to put an end to this, now.”

“You don’t understand— a Goblin Lord is an A-ranked threat! Even a team of B-ranks won’t be enough to stop him!”

A family covered right by a fallen house. A couple and their two children. Noele glanced to the side, looking at their terrified faces. They screamed as they took off, scared just from Glutaz’s gaze.

“Kill them, my children,” the Goblin Lord said, and a group of little laughing goblins gave chase.

Noele gritted her teeth. “I will not let you!”

She dashed forward, vanishing with a [Flash Step]. But somehow, Glutaz kept up with her this time. The Goblin Lord intercepted her, landing a kick to her side. She screamed in pain as she crashed into the ground sending up a column of dust.

The Goblin Lord landed right next to her, shaking its head. “You will not do anything. You will watch your people die as I have.”

Noele lay there, bloodied and broken. She coughed up a mouthful of blood. Yet, still, she managed to get up. She looked past the Goblin Lord to the family. The goblins had cornered them, and the father picked up a nearby rock, standing protectively before his wife and children.

“Your people have hunted down mine for eons past. You have treated us like pests. Exterminated entire tribes off the face of the world like they were but weed in the grass. No more, I say. My people have suffered enough. Now, it is time for justice to be passed. Watch as the Era of Goblins begins now!”

Glutaz cackled wildly as the goblins easily disarmed the father. They stood over him, weapons raised as his daughter screamed and dashed forward. The mother tried to stop her, but the son ran forward as well. The goblins turned, aiming their blades at the two children—

And a crossbow bolt shot through the first goblin. Glutaz blinked, and the goblins turned in shock. A second projectile impaled another goblin as a voice interrupted them.

“Over here, you little monsters!” Justyn yelled as he loaded another bolt into a crossbow.

The group of goblins shrieked, charging after the [Receptionist] with their daggers raised as he cursed. He stumbled back and dropped the crossbow as they reached him. Glutaz shook his head, laughing.

“A foolish attempt.” The Goblin Lord looked back down at Noele. “They will die, then you shall too.”

Noele bit her lower lip. She watched as the goblins overwhelmed both Justyn and the family. Something had to be done. She couldn’t just give up here. But she was too... too... weak.

And a fire ignited in her heart. Noele the Noble Spellsword looked up as she reached for whatever strength she had left. Her white eyes flashed, and she met the Goblin Lord’s gaze.

“Oh? You still have some fight left in you,” Glutaz chuckled. “Good.”

“You blame us for killing your people, so you choose the path of vengeance. But we only fight back because you goblins have only ever killed or destroyed our cities and our villages. Every single time in history we have tried to make a pact with your tribes, you goblins betrayed us. It is in your nature to destroy. That is why we treat you like monsters.”

The Goblin Lord’s gaze darkened. It watched as Noele rose to her teeth, her left hand shimmering a golden light. Glutaz said nothing as she continued.

“If you really care for the best interest of your people, you wouldn’t have destroyed Windrip. All you’re doing is endangering their lives even further! You could’ve chosen peace, but instead, you chose to destroy. So I will stop you!” She took a step forward, raising her left hand. “[Grand Fireblast]!”

And the golden flames engulfed the Goblin Lord once again. Glutaz stood defenseless as the blast of magical fire lit up the darkened sky. A pillar that rose up above the clouds. Noele put everything she could into that attack. It was more powerful than it ever had been. It should have completely incinerated Glutaz—

But a pair of crimson eyes shone through the golden flames. A large hand reached out, tearing through the fire like it was nothing. Glutaz swiped to the side with his right hand, causing the [Grand Fireblast] to dissipate like he was shearing through a veil.

“Is that really all you’ve got? Pathetic.” It emerged from the flames completely unscathed.

“What...?” Noele just stared as the Goblin Lord took the brunt of her attack and survived. “H-how...?”

She stumbled back, but Glutaz just walked forward. The Goblin Lord grinned savagely.

“You have failed. Goodbye.” Its entire body glowed crimson, and it swung down at her.

Noele flinched, closing her eyes. “No—”

She waited for the inevitable. She readied herself for every single one of her bones to be crushed. But nothing happened. The young woman blinked, finding herself lying next to Justyn and the family of four in safety.

All of them exchanged a confused glance. Noele got up and looked around. The Goblin Lord was standing a hundred feet ahead of her, looking just as puzzled as she was.

“What just happened?” she asked, utterly befuddled.

“Are you alright?” a voice said. “You look pretty beat up. Do you think you can survive?”

Noele spun around to see a ragged figure standing behind her. A brown-haired woman with a sheathed sword who was dressed like she was a beggar. The only part of her get-up that stood out was her cloak. She wore a black and blue cloak that was torn and shredded, somehow still held together despite all the damage it had endured.

“Who...?” Noele just stared.

“I’m—” the brown-haired woman started.

“Amelia?” Justyn interrupted her. The [Receptionist] groaned. “Oh great, and here I thought Guildmaster Evan got here in time to save us. But it’s just you. We’re truly fucked, aren’t we?”

The Goblin Lord spun around, narrowing its eyes as it caught sight of the humans. Amelia just shrugged.

“If you didn’t want me to save your life, you could’ve just said so,” she said flatly.

“Saved our lives?” Justyn gestured at the Goblin Lord as its horde gathered around it. “That right there is an A-ranked threat. What is a wannabe-adventurer like you going to do to stop it?”

“An A-ranked threat?” Amelia blinked. “Honestly, I don’t even know what that means—”

Noele’s eyes flickered. Her gaze snapped to the side as she called out. “Watch out!”

The brown-haired woman cocked her head as the Goblin Lord suddenly appeared behind her. Glutaz’s entire body was glowing with a raging red aura. Its speed had doubled— even compared to just a minute earlier. Noele couldn’t even keep up with it now.

“You humans really are nothing but pests! Where do you even keep crawling out from?” Glutaz screamed as he swung down with both his hands at Amelia’s back. “[Enraged Hammer Blow]!”

Noele flinched, closing her eyes. The earth shook— the ground broke open from just the shockwave. The young woman expected Amelia to be splattered on the ground like paste. But when Noele opened her eyes, she saw nothing of the sort.

Amelia stood there with her head slightly tilted forward, the blow having stopped at the back of her head. Other than the annoyed look on her face, she looked completely unscathed.

Glutaz leapt back, smirking. “Impressive. Perhaps I underestimated you. I didn’t expect a human to be able to survive my strongest Skill. Are you an A-ranked adventurer?” It raised its head, thinking aloud. “Although, I doubt they would stand a chance against me right now. After all, I am now Level 60 thanks to my [A Goblin’s Rage]. So an S-ranked adventurer, then?”

Amelia didn’t respond. Her gaze darkened over. Noele watched as the brown-haired woman raised a trembling fist.

“Then this is the perfect opportunity for me to test the limits of my power. Come, human! Show me the might of humankind, and I will show you the wrath of goblinkind!”

The Goblin Lord barreled forward. Its crimson aura whipped around it wildly like it was in flames. The nearby watching goblins cheered as it reached Amelia. She raised her head, her jaw clenched. Spinning around, she kicked Glutaz in the stomach.

“I was in the middle of a fucking conversation!”

And the Goblin Lord exploded. In an instant, Glutaz the Goblin Lord was reduced to nothing but red paste. Its corpse splattered in a line that cut across all of Windrip, reaching even the edges of the nearby forest. The watching goblins froze as their leader was obliterated from a single hit.

Amelia blinked, taking a step back. She looked down at the trail of red she had made and scratched her chin.

“Oops. Man, I really need to watch myself, huh? I didn’t mean to kill you with that. But I guess that answers that question— an A-ranked threat is really, really weak.”

She spoke to herself as Justyn’s jaw dropped. The family of four gaped, and the nearby goblins screamed, scattering into the distance.

Noele just looked on, wide-eyed. Her mind couldn’t process what just happened. She tried to work her jaw, and only a single sentence came out.

“What... just happened?”