The Footsteps of Fear

"Just stay behind me and watch, okay? I will handle all of them," Elise said while looking at the ground.

"Okay…!" Winifred replied.

After that, Elise and Winifred suddenly teleported to the middle of a group of goblins in front of a cave where the goblins were guarding the entrance.

Elise and Winifred were surrounded by goblins near the cave entrance. The goblins were very small in height, wearing only pants made from very basic cloth. All the goblins near the cave had two types of weapons in their hands: a knife and a wooden stick with a rock attached to the end, likely used for smashing things.

All the goblins had the same height, green skin, long sharp angular noses, small eyes, and a pouch tied to their waists.

Seeing that they were in the middle of the goblins and surrounded by weapons, Winifred was shocked. Fear started rising within her, and her legs began trembling as memories of the green goblin giant haunted her, bringing back dark moments that she had almost forgotten.

"Don't worry. As long as I'm here, I won't allow them to even touch you," Elise said, staring directly at the goblins in front of her.

Hearing what Elise said, Winifred understood that with Elsie, she was completely safe. Winifred took a long breath, trying to calm and control herself.

Elise and Winifred, still holding each other's hands, stood their ground near the cave entrance, surrounded by goblins from all directions.

Suddenly, seeing Elise and Winifred in front of the cave, the goblins were shocked and immediately started attacking from all directions, raising their weapons.

Seeing the goblins approaching, Elise bent slightly, placing one hand on the ground. Suddenly, many tree branches started emerging from the ground, grabbing every goblin around them. The branches lifted all the goblins into the air.

Seeing the goblins trapped in mid-air by the branches, Winifred was shocked once again. She realized Elise's immense strength and how important it was to be powerful.

The goblins, grabbed by the branches and hanging in the air, tried to attack the branches with their knives and wooden stone hammers, attempting to free themselves.

"Smile; this is tree nature magic. With this, we can control and create tree branches from the ground," Elise said.

Suddenly, the branches holding the goblins grew sharp edges and pierced the goblins' hearts. One by one, in mere seconds, all the goblins surrounding Elise and Winifred were dead, hanging in the air, with blood dripping from their wounds onto the ground.

The ground around Elise and Winifred was now covered in blood.

Seeing the dead goblins hanging in the air and blood dripping onto the ground, Winifred's eyes widened. It was a brutal scene, one that could unsettle anyone.

"This is how we survive. You have to be strong; otherwise, others will take your place, and you'll end up like these goblins," Elise said, her cold eyes focused on the dead goblins, her face serious.

Winifred understood what Elise was trying to teach her and why she had shown her this.

"Let's go inside the cave!" Elise said in a calm voice.

"Oh... okay!" Winifred replied.

The cave entrance was large enough for both humans and goblin giants to enter.

After walking straight for a while inside the hollow mountain, they came to a fork in the path with two different roads leading in opposite directions.

"You go left. You'll find Leo and the others there. There are no goblins around them. Bring them here and tell them we're here to rescue them. Wait for me here," Elise said, looking at Winifred.

"What…? You mean I go alone? And you?" Winifred replied, a bit shocked.

"Don't worry. There are no goblins around the hostages, and they aren't in any prison or chains. Just tell them what I said, okay?"

"Okay. And where are you going?" Winifred asked.

"I'm going in the right direction. That's where the goblins are. I'll kill them and come back," Eliie replied.

"Okay," Winifred said.

Winifred started walking to the left, glancing back. Elise was still looking at her with a smile and confidence.

"Don't worry, Winifred. All the goblins are dead. You just need to tell them that the goblins are gone, and we're here to help. Just come back with me, and it's done," Winifred told herself.

On the way, Winifred found a small sword on the ground. "Should I pick it up? No, Elise said there are no goblins, so I don't need it," Winifred thought and continued walking.

After walking further, she came to a wooden door.

"A door? Elise didn't say anything about a door," Winifred muttered.

She checked the door, which was as large as the cave entrance, big enough for a giant goblin. Examining it carefully, she noticed it was locked. She tried to push it, thinking it might already be open, but it didn't budge.

The door was locked.

Winifred realized she needed a key to unlock it.

"Should I go back to Elise and tell her the door is locked? But she's fighting goblins," Winifred thought.

"If I could have brought that sword with me, maybe I could use it to cut this door," Winifred thought.

Suddenly, she heard something. The ground started shaking, as though something was approaching her. The sound of heavy footsteps grew louder.

Winifred remembered the green giant goblin from before. Her body started trembling. The sound grew louder and louder.

"But Elise said there are no goblins nearby, and she didn't mention any goblin giants. Then how is this possible?" Winifred said to herself.

She tried to open the door again, realizing it was the only way to escape, but the door wouldn't budge. Winifred regretted not picking up the sword earlier.

"Damn! If I had just picked up that sword from the ground, maybe I could have opened the door—or at least fought him off, buying time for Elise to come," Winifred thought.

 She realized her mistake could cost her life.

Winifred continuously tried to open the door, but it was too large and firmly locked.

The sound of the giant's footsteps was now very close.

Winifred knew it had seen her. She turned back, her eyes filled with shock and fear.