Group Chaos

"Cree!" Multiple goblins shrieked as they skulked around, readying for their attack. A few archers scattered about, lining up in the back ranks of the goblin formation. Four archers gathered in a line, reaching into the quivers on their backs and nocking arrows onto their bowstrings.

The other eight goblin soldiers slowly surrounded Bane in a circle, all of them nearly identical. They wore loincloths and wielded small swords.

"Tch!" Bane clicked his tongue, a cold sweat forming on his back.

This many... Can I do this? One goblin was a breeze for Bane, but twelve... He was cautious, especially with the archers. He knew he couldn't let his guard down. Bane reached for the hilt of his sword and drew it with a loud shing. Standing surrounded by the goblins, a box appeared before him.

[Urgent Quest]

[Survive!]

Bane had gotten better at hiding his surprise when these boxes appeared. He didn't even flinch this time. He opened the urgent quest's description:

Slay the Goblins: 0 of 12

Reward: 1,000 Shill, 1 Skill Point

Bane swallowed the excess saliva that had quickly formed in his mouth, his anxiety working overtime. He closed the box and waited for the goblins to attack.

Those who make the first move lose, Bane thought, standing tall like a statue with his short sword gripped in both hands, ready to respond to any attack.

Bane couldn't see all the goblins at once. At most, he could keep six of the soldiers in his vision, meaning there were always two that could easily sneak up on him. Or so the goblins thought.

With Bane's Danger Sense skill, he practically had an eye in the back of his head. So, when a goblin outside his vision attacked, he was ready.

Ching! Bane swung around, meeting the goblin soldier's curved sword. The clash lit up the area with orange sparks for an instant. The force of Bane's block sent the goblin stumbling back into line with its companions.

Bane wanted to charge at it, but doing so would leave him open to other attacks. He was locked in a stalemate. In his thoughts, he thanked the archers for not firing at him yet.

With comedic timing, Bane heard the twing of bowstrings.

Twing, twing, twing, twing. Four arrows were fired in quick succession, followed by a low whistle as they cut through the air toward him. Bane could feel the imminent threat through his Danger Sense skill, and his eyes darted around, searching for an escape.

Each goblin was equally distant, leaving no clear path. The arrows would land any second. Bane dove between two goblins and rolled out of the way. The goblins' swords struck the ground, and the arrows bounced off the stone floor before clattering to a halt.

The risk of breaking the encirclement paid off, though. It gave him room to move, and he targeted the archers first. The goblin soldiers tried to recircle Bane, but he was too quick. He lunged toward the archers, who scattered in multiple directions. Before they could escape, he swung his sword, decapitating two of them. Their dark purple blood sprayed into the air.

The other two archers split off, running in opposite directions. Bane made a split-second decision and charged after the one to his right. The goblin soldiers' small legs and deformed bodies couldn't keep up with Bane's speed. He caught up to the archer and swung at its back, cutting the quiver in half along with the arrows. The goblin archer fell to the ground, twitched for a moment, and then disintegrated into ash.

Bane's sword skills were improving rapidly. Currently, he could be considered a novice swordsman. He still made plenty of unnecessary movements, and his swings lacked grace. But compared to where he started, the improvement was remarkable.

After cutting down the goblin archer, only eight goblin soldiers and the lone remaining archer were left. The archer was still running away on the other side of the room.

Bane wasn't sure if goblins could feel fear, but he had a sneaking suspicion they did. The once-confident, sneering goblins were now cautiously circling him. This gave Bane a boost of confidence, and he went after the closest one.

With a few points invested in his Agility attribute, Bane had definitely gotten faster. Even with his unrefined, awkward movements, his sheer speed was enough to give him the edge. Bane stabbed forward, lunging at the nearest goblin. His blade pierced through the goblin's chest and exited its back, staining the white steel a deep purple.

The goblin's body disintegrated, and the Energy Crystal inside fell to the ground with a clink.

"Cree!" A goblin soldier attempted to flank Bane, but its scream, combined with Bane's Danger Sense, alerted him. Bane turned on his heel and slashed where the goblin stood.

Seven left, Bane thought. With the tables turning so quickly, some of the goblins were now attempting to flee.

Two stayed, ready to fight, while the rest, including the last archer, tried to escape. Bane made quick work of the two remaining goblin soldiers. He stepped toward the closest one, which attempted to attack him. Bane simply blocked and overpowered the poor goblin, sending it tumbling onto its back. He plunged his blade through its chest.

The other goblin just stood, dumbfounded. It seemed to realize the futility of its attack and froze as Bane sliced its head in two.

I can get the crystals later, Bane thought, glancing at the goblins' decaying bodies and the crystals they left behind. He turned his attention to the fleeing goblins; he really wanted those urgent quest rewards.

He looked around, trying to figure out where they had gone, when another box appeared:

[Skill Acquired!]

[Feared Hunt]

Bane was tempted to ignore the box and chase after the goblins, but he thought the skill might help him. So far, all of his skills had appeared when he needed them most, and he assumed this would be no different. He opened the description:

Feared Hunt:

Grants the user the ability to track low-level creatures.

Bane held back a laugh. Brilliant.

Feared Hunt, Bane thought, activating the skill. To his surprise, all color drained from his vision, leaving the already drab dungeon in grayscale. A red haze appeared before him, leading around a corner ahead.

They must've gone that way… Bane thought, following the haze. As he rounded the corner, the haze extended down the path.

Running, Bane soon heard the shuffling of multiple feet. Here they are.

The five remaining goblins were still running, but Bane was faster. The archer, lagging behind the pack, was the first to fall. With no melee weapon, it couldn't fight back. A single slash from Bane's sword was enough, leaving the four goblin soldiers ahead.

One by one, Bane hacked down the remaining goblins. He had to admit, those four were surprisingly fast. By the end of the hunt, Bane's breath was ragged. With all the goblins defeated, he addressed the text boxes that appeared.

Enemies Defeated:

Goblin Soldier – 8

Goblin Archer – 4

Rewards:

12 XS-Energy Crystals

460 XP

Bane read the text box and nodded. The system had stopped showing a text box after every enemy. Now, it only displayed updates during downtime and in a condensed format. He closed the box and moved to the quests section.

Survive! - Complete

Slay the Goblins: 12 of 12

Reward: 1,000 Shill, 1 Skill Point

Bane claimed the quest rewards and watched his bank balance increase by one thousand. He now had just over three thousand shill—not a lot by any means, but he gazed at the number with pride.

Finally, Bane opened his status. In the process, he'd gained two skill points: one from leveling up and one from the urgent quest. He allocated one to Strength and one to Agility. His new status read:

[Bane of the Slums]: LV 8 (25/890)

[Title]: Slimey Slayer LV 1 (72/100), Goblin Dispatcher LV 1 (14/100)

[Strength]: LV 4

[Dexterity]: LV 2

[Mind]: LV 1

[Agility]: LV 4

[Fortitude]: LV 1

[Magic]: LV 1

[Skills]: Appraisal LV 1, Threat Analysis LV 1, Danger Sense LV 1, Passive Healing LV 1, Magnetize LV 1, Night Vision, Feared Hunt

Never in his wildest dreams would Bane have imagined himself here. I will succeed, he thought, gazing at his levels, attributes, and skills.

I wonder how many skills I'll get? Bane mused, reading through each of them. For someone who had only been an adventurer for a few days, this many skills was unheard of. Also when you account for his Bank and Fast Travel ability, Bane was definitely an oddity. 

Soon, the guild and other factions might have their eye on me. Bane thought, it was far out, but a possibility. In the dungeon, it was a lawless land where the strong ruled, morals could no be relied on. I need to get stronger to be safe. He thought back to Luna and clutched his hands to fist.

Revenge will come soon enough.

Bane closed all the text boxes and took a moment to catch his breath. Then he stood and continued his journey through level two.