Surrounded

Kaden's heart lurched at the hiss of the incoming fireball. The air rippled with heat, and a moment later, the telltale glow of fiery magic illuminated the tangled leaves of his hiding place.

They've spotted me.

A jolt of fear cut through him. No time to dodge gracefully. If he stayed crouched here, he'd be burned alive. He needed an immediate move.

He broke into motion, ripping himself from the bush just as the searing orb smashed against the foliage. Flames whooshed, leaves and branches going up in an explosion of sparks. Kaden felt the heat skim across his back, singeing hair and scorching his clothes as he ran out.

The clearing lay fully exposed now, with battered kobolds crowding around their mage and zero boars left to distract them. As he stumbled clear of the smoke, a chorus of guttural snarls rose from the scaly horde. 

Every yellowed eye locked on him. 

Their battered bodies might be half-crippled by earlier battles, but the staff-wielding caster was obviously still charged with power—and that meant they were lethal. They were also obviously not happy to see him.

He steadied his breath, flipping his spear from one hand to the other. Thorn Whip or Sanguine Roots could buy some seconds of confusion, but could they outpace an angry ring of kobolds?

A hush fell over the battlefield. The cinders floating down from his burning bush, the tang of smoke and singed hair, the quiet shuffle of kobold feet on bloodstained grass—all sharpened into a single moment. 

Kaden's chest burned with each breath. 

He glimpsed the caster raising its staff again, faint embers swirling around the red crystal.

Act now or die.

He had to do it. There was no turning back now. He immediately cast [Sanguine Roots] on the caster. 

Crimson tendrils erupted from the blood-soaked ground beneath the kobold caster, latching onto its feet. The scaly creature snarled, embers sputtering in the air around its staff as it struggled against the hungry vines.

This would buy him some time and prevent the damn kobold from casting any high level spell by constantly interrupting him. 

As for the others… it was time for a good old brawl.

Thankfully, no other casters were there and most of the kobolds seemed to be injured. One problem partially contained. But a dozen more ran straight at him, battered yet fierce. 

A single glance told him these kobolds were around his level—maybe level 8 or 9, same as him—but there were far too many. Each one brandished a spear or club, eyes gleaming with savage purpose.

Kaden clenched his teeth and lurched into motion. The closest kobold lunged in with a short spear. Kaden parried with his own, the clash of iron vibrating up his arms. He twisted, hooking Thorn Whip around the kobold's arm, yanking it off-balance. A quick thrust of his spear ended its shriek mid-breath.

[Ding! You have killed a kobold warrior]

He hardly had time to register the kill before two more kobolds descended on him, swinging crude blades. He ducked the first swing, then hopped back from the second, heart hammering. One glancing blow caught his thigh, drawing a thin line of blood. 

Not good, he thought, pulse in his ears.

He raised his spear to retaliate, but a third kobold slid in from the side, jabbing at his ribs. He nearly didn't catch it in time, blocking it with the shaft of his spear. The impact stung, forcing him back a step.

This was not going to be easy. But Kaden knew that he had to keep pushing. Otherwise, he would be right where he previously was, in a prison cell waiting for someone else to save him.

"Die!" he snarled, driving every ounce of force into his spear. The third kobold parried awkwardly, but Thorn Whip lashed out at the same time, biting into its shoulder. 

The sudden yank threw the scaly warrior off-balance, and Kaden took the chance to ram his spear straight into its exposed side. A sickening crunch, a wet gasp—then nothing.

[Ding! You have killed a kobold warrior]

Fighting with a spear in one hand and the thorn whip in the other was not convenient but he kept going forward with the mad rumble. They had numbers on their side and he had the slight edge in stats and utter desperation on his side. He was fighting for survival and he was going to win.

Nope. Kaden quickly realized he needed more than that.

His gaze fell on the boar close to his feet which was not completely dead yet. In fact, many of the boars seemed to be fatally injured but hadn't yet bit the bullet.

Dodging the kobold, Kaden quickly shifted to a new strategy. First, level up and then deal with these fuckers. Ignoring the kobold raring to skewer and nail him, he maimed the dying boar and took the small chunk of experience points.

It took another two boars and the dang persistent kobold to get him up another level.

[Ding! You have leveled up]

[Level 8 > Level 9]

[Ding! You have gained +1 Mental Strength, +1 Dexterity, +1 Physical Strength, and 5 free attribute points]

Kaden distributed the stats in a hurry and the next second, he turned to face the dozen kobolds who had all caught up to him and were now ready to gang bang him.