The Plan

I'm currently hiding at the bushes near the Goblin Warrior's Tent. Yes, it was the same bush where we heard all the "commotion" that happened last night.

I looked to my upper left and found Seraline at the top of the tree near the wooden bridge. She was using the leaves as cover and was waiting for the right time to strike.

A minute later, I saw a goblin spearwoman approaching to survey the bridge as part of her patrol routine. I tightened the grip on my Staff as I knew the battle was about to commence. It was the spear goblin with the highest level among the women and she was exactly our target

We need to make our move at the precise moments. The lesser the deviations from our plans, the better. I exchanged looks with Sera and she gave the nod.

She pulled out her Twin Daggers. In the outline of each dagger, a thin and dim red glow could be seen. It was the indication that she has used a skill, [Sharpened Edge]

[Sharpened Edge

Class requirement: Assassin

Required Level: 1

Skill type: Buff

Mana Cost: 15

Cool Down: 25s

Effect: Infuses the weapon's edge with mana, greatly increasing its damage potential for a single time. Increases Base ATK by (15+10%ATK). Cool Down starts the moment the skill is cast and the Buff lasts indefinitely.

Recasting the skill while the buff is still in effect would put the skill on cool down but will have no effect]

When the spearwoman was directly underneath Sera, the assassin jumped from her spot and aimed both of her daggers at the unsuspecting Goblin.

A pair of bluish-white pixelated lines was soon drawn on the goblin's back. Although the use of gravitational force can not influence the damage calculation, it made the attack arrive faster while also adding the element of surprise. With Sera's level and equipment alone, her ATK was around the 70s. By using the skill, even when taking into account the opponent's DEF and ABS values, she still dealt almost a third of the Goblin's HP.

Sera didn't waste the time as a new white line was drawn across the opponent's back. She immediately followed up with another skill [Execute]!

[Execute

Class requirement: Assassin

Required Level: 5

Skill type: Damage

Mana Cost: 50

Cool Down: 45s

Effect: A Heavy blow that announces the target's death. Deals (30+130%ATK) to the target

This attack can not miss.]

[Execute]'s potential as a damage skill is underrated in the early levels. Still, in a time spanning a single second, the two skills has taken almost 70% of the Goblin's life!

But the combo didn't end there as Sera's Twin Daggers was once again surrounded by a blood red glow. She casted another [Sharpened Edge]! By casting the first [Sharpened Edge] ahead of time and letting it fully cool down, she was able to benefit from 3 skills consecutively.

With the third strike, the Goblin's 300 Health Points reached zero. It was a testament that Assasins can deal devastating damage in a matter of seconds. Sera's Mana Points were now at 5/85 but she didn't mind as assasins can still fight effectively without relying on skills.

With her HP down to 0, the goblin's body laid flat on the ground. Her Mana Points which were previously full was slowly being drained but before it was completely emptied, she was able to let out a loud cry which alerted the rest of the Goblins.

Aaaaak!

Being the closest from the sound, the Goblin Warrior was the first one to get out of the tent. He was not carrying his spear but a sword sheathe could be seen hanging on his waist. He saw Serah but then turned his sight on the body of the dead spearwoman as it broke down into countless fragments and slowly faded away.

Wraaaa!

Countless birds could be seen leaving the treetops as they were frightened by the loud roar.

'That goblin must be his favorite wife' I can't help but comment.

The three other goblins soon came into view as if responding to the call.

Sera picked up a small pebble and threw it to the warrior's head. It must have been painful since the goblin's head was slightly knocked back but he didn't suffer any damage as it wasn't considered an actual 'attack'.

The enraged warrior drew his sword and charged towards Sera. The lightfeeted elf ran in a straight line, she wanted to cross the bridge using the minimum distance at the fastest. The Goblin saw through her intentions and prepared an attack.

While Sera was halfway through the bridge, The Goblin Warrior's hand glowed as he held his sword akin to a javelin. After a moment of aiming, he threw the sword.

The sword streaked in the air at a fast speed, Sera's pointy ears twitched. She heard an attack was coming but she can't accurately judge the trajectory of the attack. At this rate, She'll be hit!

She can't dodge it but I can block it for her. If I place a [Mana Barrier] in the sword's path, I can save her! I once again tightened the grip on my staff. I already pointed the weapon in the right direction but I didn't manifest the skill.

"Follow the plan. Rule your emotions, don't let it rule you. It is not yet time. Stick to the plan" I kept on repeating these words like it was some sort of mantra. If I take reckless decisions, I might destroy everything we've planned beforehand.

As expected, the sword hit Sera and a small white line was now present in her sleeves. It only grazed her shoulder as she managed to roll at the last second but the system begged to differ. By all means, It was considered a hit so she took full damage of the attack. Coupled with the fact that Assassins had the lowest HP amongst the twelve classes, a big 40% of her total health was gone with that single hit.

My heart skipped as I saw how much damage she suffered. I'm still too weak.

Sera didn't mind as she continued her sprint. The Goblin warrior crossed the bridge and chased after her. 15 meters behind him, the trio of spearwomen were brandishing their own spears, preparing to throw their weapons the moment Sera is within their range.

Sera glanced at my direction and I gave a small nod to indicate that I was prepared. I confirmed the location of the 3 spearwomen and found them to be far from reaching the bridge.

While confirming their locations, I saw movement from the caravan. The prisoners were using the opportunity to escape! At first glance, they looked like children but a closer look would reveal a pair of lumps on their foreheads. Cliff Goblins! To think that the Goblins would enslave one of their own.

The three Cliff Goblins slowly got out of the carriage. Two of them were female while the last one was a male. His face featured 2 whip marks fashioned like an "X". He must be the one being whipped yesterday night while the other two must be the source of the "other sounds".

"Now!" Sera's shout brought me back to my senses.

As soon as she gave the signal, I aimed and casted [Talisman Explosion] on the rear end of the bridge.

My staff glowed and the small zigged zagged paper strips rotated at a fast speed. A small talisman then flew off to the direction I was aiming. When it landed on the makeshift bridge, it shone a bright light before the booming sounds of the explosion could be heard.

[Talisman Explosion

Class Requirement: Shrine Priest

Required Level: 1

Skill type: Area damage

Mana Cost: 20

Cool Down: 13s

Effect: Throws a talisman which summons an explosion. Deals (12+80%MATK) in a small area

If the talisman's flight path is obstructed, the talisman will automatically release the stored explosion]

The Goblin Warrior rolled to the front as the bridge was destroyed. The splinters of logs from the explosion was quickly swept away by the ravishing river current. I once thought of drowning the drowning the leader but abandoned the thought. It would require the perfect timing as the explosion must happen exactly at the middle of the bridge when the target is exactly above the center of explosion. Any delays or rush in the timing can lead to a failed attempt. It was better to play it safely.

Now that the bridge is destroyed, we have achieved our initial plan of isolating the Goblin Warrior from the others. Although Sera being heavily damaged was not part of the plan, I knew she was still confident enough on her capabilities as she did not ask me to blow up the front end of the bridge to secure an escape but rather went with the original plan of luring the Warrior alone. All I have to do is make sure she fights him undisturbed.

The other three goblins looked at the remains of the wooden bridge before turning their gazes on the bushes where the small paper talisman came from. Despite their low intelligence, they are not that dumb and I knew that my time spent hiding was over.

The goblins readied their spears as they prepared a charging stance.

I stood up and slightly bent my legs, also in a preparation to make my move.

One step. Two steps. Three steps. The Goblins' charge started out slow but was rapidly accelerating. Seeing this, I started to gather strength to my legs as I also gave my best effort to sprint at maximum speed!

Despite all of this, the 20-meter distance between us is only decreasing at a slow pace and it might take more than half a minute before a melee occurs.

Congratulations to those of you who figured it right! We were not going against each other but we were moving towards the same direction!

As the goblins charged, I turned back and ran away!