Freedom & Fireballs

Zulu had yet to leave the cover of the cave; He was calmly undressing Dale's body.

'I should be quick about this. I don't want some passerby to come across what's about to happen. That could cause quite a few problems, I think.'

Zulu deactivated the [Corporeal Illusion] spell, returning to his normal fox state.

'I have about 80 percent mana left. I'll let it recover a bit while I'm eating. Also, eating this guy in human form would be really awkward. I guess I haven't entirely forsaken my humanity.'

Thinking that, Zulu began to devour Dale's corpse, at first slowly but soon with wild fervor.

'Damn! This is actually pretty good. Humans taste the best!'

In only a half hour, Dale's body was reduced to a skeleton.

'Mm, yummy. It seems my mana has recovered to about 90 percent, so that's 20 percent mana recovered per hour? I wish it was faster, but I'm still only a Rank 2. I always need more Essence. Speaking of which, how much is this guy gonna give me? Guess I'll find out later. For now I need to destroy the evidence. Having an army of angry soldiers tracking me down is the last thing I want.'

After reaching that conclusion, Zulu began to drag what was left of Dale's body outside the cavity.

After reaching the top of the slope and leaving the cover of the cave, the sun shone warmly on Zulu's fur, reflecting off of his beautiful orange coat.

'The sun, oh how I've missed you. Hmm, looks like it's about midday. I have plenty of time before nightfall. I should hurry; I've got a lot of work to do.'

Zulu pulled Dale's corpse into the lush forest away from the dirt path, leaving a long trail of blood. He carried the man's sword between his jaws.

After walking a few hundred meters, Zulu used his fox claws to burrow into the ground.

'This feels natural; I am a fox after all.'

Zulu dug a large hole a few feet down into the ground before shoving Dale's mangled remains and sword into it. He then filled the hole with dirt and compacted it to the best of his abilities. Lastly, he dragged branches and other foliage to conceal the unnatural patch of dirt.

'This will have to do. Now about the blood,' Zulu thought, looking at the long streak of crimson that was smeared across the grass.

'Water or earth magic would really come in handy right about now.'

It took another two hours for Zulu to hide the trail of blood under dirt, leaves, and grass. The mess inside the entrance of the cave took the longest to clean up, which wasn't surprising to Zulu, considering that's where he had his lunch.

Zulu triggered his [Corporeal Illusion] spell and threw on Dale's clothing. The outfit hung loosely on his body due to his smaller size, but it was his only available option.

Zulu had buried the sword because he felt it was an unnecessary burden on his agility. He had never learned how to wield one to begin with. Though he kept the dagger, hanging it off of his belt.

Like that, Zulu walked out of the cave for the last time.

'I can finally leave this godforsaken place behind. Goodbye first home, I will never miss you.'

Thinking that, Zulu began his journey in a random direction through the oak forest.

After an hour of walking, the [Corporeal Illusion] spell ran out of mana, and Zulu was returned to his fox form. His clothes now draped around his fox body awkwardly.

'Damn. I don't want to leave any of this stuff behind, especially the dagger. I'll need it in case I need to interact with other humans.'

Zulu could only sigh thinking that. He didn't want to be caught naked again in human form, but he also didn't want to have to constantly carry the clothes around in his mouth.

'I have no choice; I'll have to leave it behind. I'll just have to avoid using the [Corporeal Illusion] spell until I find a more permanent pair of clothes. In a world of magic, I'm sure that exists somewhere.'

Zulu dug a small hole before burying the clothes and dagger inside.

Now exempt of any clothing, Zulu resumed his wandering in his fox form.

The day passed slowly as Zulu ventured through the lush oak forest, the sun tracing a line in the sky as it reached for the horizon.

'I'm going to have to find some shelter soon. I don't want to be caught unprepared for nighttime. Who knows what kinds of magical creatures come out at night?'

Thinking that, Zulu began to snoop around for a place to call home for the night. Of course, it would only be temporary; He didn't want to stay nearby the location where he murdered the guard.

While Zulu was searching around, however, something caught his attention. There was a bright flicker of red light in the distance. The flicker grew in intensity and became more pronounced, destroying everything it touched.

'Is that fire?'

Zulu utilized [Creep] to move towards the red light in the distance and lowered his body, keeping himself concealed under the tall grass.

After a few minutes of sneaking, Zulu's suspicion was validated. A large deer-like beast with a single horn protruding from its forehead laid lifeless on the ground, fully ablaze.

'What happened to it?'

Zulu wondered. However, the answer quickly revealed itself. Three short green humanoids appeared from behind the trees, attacking the burning deer with spears.

'Goblins?'

The three goblins were hideous and short, standing at only three and a half feet tall. They had bald heads, pointy ears, and scarlet eyes with vertically-slit pupils. Their hands ended with short sharp nails. They were skinny, but retained large bellies; No doubt, they'd killed and eaten some creature beforehand. Their disfigured faces wore perverted smiles with sharp chipped teeth as they watched the writhing deer.

The two spear-wielding goblins wore only some basic tan cloth around their waists, baring their skinny chests and full bellies to the world.

The goblins stabbed the deer repeatedly until it was filled with holes like Swiss cheese.

'Guys, I think it's dead. You can stop now.'

Zulu had to restrain a laugh from bursting out. The goblins' stupidity was quite a comical sight to behold. They were too dense to tell the living from a black lump of meat.

The flames on the deer's body soon deteriorated as its fur was burned away completely, revealing a charred corpse underneath.

However, Zulu then noticed the peculiarity of one of the goblins. It was slightly taller and was grasping a wooden staff between its sharp claws. It wore a complete full-body cloth robe around its body. It was simple, but compared to the other two goblins' crotch towels, it might at well belong to nobility.

'A goblin mage? Are they actually smart enough to use magic? Is it a Rank 3?'

Zulu revealed a sly grin as an idea formed in his mind.

'Should I steal their prey? I haven't had cooked venison in awhile. Well, I'm sure the meat is ruined now, but that's fine.'

After thinking that, Zulu began to shuffle closer to the trio of goblins, using the abundant foliage to conceal his approach.

The two spear-wielding goblins continued to mutilate the poor deer's corpse, joy beaming off of their expressions.

Zulu took advantage of their amusement in stabbing the deer to rush out of the grass for a surprise attack.

The goblin mage was the first to notice his assault but was unable to prevent it; The large orange fox was simply too quick.

Despite being on all fours, the goblins were still only slightly taller than Zulu. His size was by no means small, especially for a fox.

Zulu pounced on the back of one of the smaller goblins, clamping his teeth around the side of its neck and forcing it to the ground. The goblin smashed into the ground face-first as Zulu gouged out its neck relentlessly. In only a couple of seconds, its head remained attached to its body only by a thin strand of skin and muscle.

Satisfied that the goblin was dead, Zulu leaped backward to avoid the thrust of the other goblin's spear. It rushed at him with malice in its eyes.

The mage goblin merely watched from the side; It was obvious the lives of the two weaker goblins meant nothing to it.

However, the goblin mage wouldn't just sit and watch the orange fox steal their prey. After the death of the first goblin, it promptly began casting another spell.

Zulu continued to dodge the remaining spear goblin's attacks, waiting for an opportunity to strike without incurring injury.

'I'd rather not spend Essence on healing myself, so let's try not to get stabbed.'

After thinking that, Zulu felt a powerful wave of heat wash over him from the side followed by a blinding light.

'That reckless bastard! Does it not care about its companion?' Zulu thought as he quickly retreated from the incoming fireball.

The raging fire was a meter in diameter and as fast as an arrow. Zulu could not escape the proceeding explosion of flame entirely. The high temperatures seared some of his fur, burning the muscle underneath. He yelped as he endured the pain.

The spear goblin did not get off so easy. The fireball connected with the ground directly in front of it, reducing its feeble body to ash. It was no match for the flames of a higher ranked magical creature.

'So much for not getting injured.'

Zulu could only sigh at that though. He really wasn't expecting the goblin mage to sacrifice its teammate just to kill him.

'And then there was one,' Zulu thought, eyeing the mage goblin with some hesitation.

The magic the goblin was capable of throwing at him was genuinely frightening. Nonetheless, he was used to risking his life; This time was no different.

Zulu charged the goblin with incredible speed; His Rank 2 body wasn't just for show after all. Furthermore, spirit foxes specialized in agility. It wasn't likely any other Rank 2 creature could match his raw speed.

The goblin mage hastily prepared another spell seeing the incoming fox beast.

When Zulu was ten meters from the goblin mage, its spell was completed, and a fire snake five feet long flew out of its staff towards him.

The snake's flaming maws unhinged as it arrived in front of Zulu.

'Fuck!'

Zulu quickly planted his feet and dodged to the left, the fire snake grazing past the right side of his body. The flames torched his fur, sending waves of agony to his mind. The scorching pain was unbearable, causing Zulu to loudly yelp

The fire snake attempted to swerve to the right to continue attacking Zulu; However, its momentum carried it into the ground instead, dispersing into the grass and erupting the area in flame. Though there was no explosion this time, unlike the [Fireball] spell.

The goblin mage used that second to begin casting another spell.

Zulu resumed his advance and quickly closed the distance with the goblin mage; From ten meters, to five, to only two.

The goblin mage's spell finished and a large fireball materialized above its staff; However, Zulu was already too close in proximity. Launching it directly at him would only incur unnecessary injury onto itself; The fireball's explosion was simply too destructive.

Thus, the goblin mage redirected the fireball behind Zulu; However, this action would only benefit Zulu's attack.

The raging fireball exploded behind Zulu as he triggered his hind leg muscles for a leap. His tail was singed by the heat as he was propelled through the air at an impressive velocity, slamming into the chest of the goblin mage.

Zulu braced for impact with his forearms, which absorbed most of the impact. Also, the goblin mages body was lacking in hardened muscle, allowing for a softer impact.

Zulu's opponent didn't fare nearly as well. The goblin mage watched as the large fox crashed into him, its ribs cracking under the pressure of the blow.

The goblin mage flew backward, crashing into a large oak tree. The tree shook upon impact, causing some of its leave to detach and descend towards the ground.

Zulu activated [Bite] and ripped into the stunned goblin's throat with fervor, blood spraying across his face.

The goblin mage was unable to retaliate under the relentless assault of the fox. It simply did not have the body strength to defend itself; It was mage who relied on spells after all.

In only a few seconds, life left the goblin mage's body, and it grew still.

'VICTORY! FOX KIND REIGNS SUPREME!' Zulu cheered inwardly, but then he thought of something.

'The smell of blood and cooked deer will likely attract the attention of some magical creatures. I should consume them quickly.'

After that thought, Zulu dug into the goblin mage.

An hour later, the meat of the two goblins as well as the charred deer sat inside Zulu's belly.

'It's a shame the other goblin was turned to ash. I really could have used the Essence.'

Zulu could only shake his head; He was simply being too greedy.

'I should find shelter, it'll be night soon.'

The sun had begun to touch the horizon as the sky flaunted a mesmerizing red hue. Zulu only had a half hour or so to find a place to rest.

After searching the forest for a few minutes, Zulu managed to find a large oak tree with overgrown roots. He was able to dig out a small foxhole below it. It was quite cozy and even hid him decently well. It would be his home for the night.

'I should probably mask my smell while I sleep. Become one with the tree, Zulu.'

Zulu cast his [Olfactory Confusion] spell and replaced his scent with the one of the oak tree above him.

Zulu then looked at the blood stains on his orange fur coat and sighed.

'I also need a bath. I won't allow my beautiful coat to be desecrated by the blood of a lesser race… Am I racist? Well, that's fine. I should be allowed to be racist towards goblins.'

Thinking that, Zulu curled into a fuzzy orange ball and drifted off to sleep.