Chapter 26 : Second memory Death

The chimera goblin towered over the basketball court like a nightmare stitched from every species.

Its head was goblin, but stretched grotesquely wide, its eyes burning with mad intelligence. Its left arm, thick and muscular like a gorilla, dragged along the pavement. The right was an elongated mantis claw, clicking in the air, twitching with bloodlust. Spikes rippled along its back like a living minefield, and its tail some cursed blend of snake, lion, and writhing tentacles twitched and hissed.

And behind it dozens of smaller goblins chittered and snarled, forming a wild semi-circle.

Ji-Wan voice cracked through the moment.That is not a goblin. That's a stitched war crime.

It let out a roar. Not a growl—a symphony of beasts screaming at once.

We didn't have time to scream back.

They came from the windows. From the rooftops. From the shattered gymnasium doors. Goblins. Too many. Too fast. Too vicious. Like ants with knives, they swarmed.

"Don't freak out by what I am going to do. Alright." I said loudly and rushed towards the gore.

[ Beastification form : Activate. ]

[ Pet : Junior, a spider monkey ]

I closed my eyes.

My skin rippled. Bones cracked. Fur erupted along my arms, my eyes glowed violet, and fangs cut through his gums. The transformation into my beast form spider monkey hybrid wasn't graceful. It was violent.

When I opened my eyes again, the human hesitation was gone.

Only instinct remained.

"Let go" I snarled

"Sang-woo, to your left", Ji-wan composed himself and got into the action. His class, Tracker. Allowed him to detect the monsters locations and somewhat predict their next moves as well.

In-Ji opened fire. His twin pistols barked like warhounds, enhanced rounds bursting through goblin chests. "I've got the flank!"

Seo-Yeon's eyes shimmered violet. Dozens of debris shards floated around her like a silent constellation. They surged forward, impaling anything in their path.

Then she uses her skill,"force spike" on the giant.

My mother instantly used her curse of slowness and Curse of senseless on the giant.

"Aunty! to your back, two of them" Ji-wan's voice was loud enough for her to react and swing her scythe. Killing both of the goblins.

Ji-Wan's voice was calm, but his body moved with the precision of a ghost. He directed Sang-Ho's attacks, weaving through goblins and keeping them two steps ahead. Then suddenly he realized,

"Scatter and isolate!" Ji-Wan barked. His HUD already flickered with dozens of red signals. "They're separating us on purpose!" Now that he looked around the court, they were completely surrounded by the goblins.

Then suddenly a bright red dot appeared on Ji-wan's HUD. It was larger than the goblins one. It was faster. It was moving towards them. As soon as this dot reached their location.

Goblins on the roof were jolted to death and from the rooftop, came a yellow three-headed dragon, Volt. He is just larger than a street dog.

Volt appeared without warning just a thunderclap and a shimmer in the sky. His three-headed dragon spiraled into view, wings folding inward like a cloak.

Volt launched first, soaring down with his three dragon heads unleashing bursts of flame. He looped over the goblins, a spiral of fire forming a temporary wall.

But there was no time.

Ye-Rin ran under him, axe already gleaming with static. "Cover me!" she shouted.

Ji-Wan stumbled backward, nearly tripping over rubble. "Okay, what the hell is that?"

Don't question it, Sang-woo muttered, stepping in front of him with his spear low.Just be glad it's on our side.

Volt's all three heads glared at the chimera.

"You call that a chimera?" Volt snarled."Pathetic"

I rushed towards this chimera, launching myself in the air and landed a strong kick to its face.It's movement and senses were affected by Mother's spells.

Ji-Wan shouted: "Watch out for it's tail!"

But it was too late.

The tail lashed out—three tentacles cracked the air. I ducked one, rolled over another, but the third caught my ribs. Slammed me through the wall and to the tree outside. Everything went black for a second.

It launched forward with terrifying speed, its lion legs kicking up concrete as it dashed straight toward Seo-Yeon.

She raised her hand telekinesis flaring in a pulse that caught its leg mid-air for a moment.

"NOW!"she screamed.

In-Ji fired. One shot. Two. Three.

Steel bullets slammed into the beast exposed side, where flesh looked half-decayed. Each impact sparked and staggered the monster slightly but not enough.

Its lion legs blurred again, breaking through Seo-yeon grip, crossing twenty meters in seconds. It slammed into In-Ji with its gorilla arm, sending him crashing through a rusted school wall.

"In-Ji!" Seo-Yeon screamed.

I roared, swinging from the ceiling, my claws sinking into the chimera back. I clawed down the line of its spine slicing through the spike until the beast screamed and bucked me off.

Ye-Rin charged from below."Split it down the middle!" Ye-Rin cried. She vaulted up—Volt catching her midair, giving her lift.

"DIE, CHIMERA FREAK!" she screamed, bringing her electrified axe down on the creature's mantis claw.

It shrieked—arm falling limp.

As soon as it's arm falls off. Mother rushed in, attacking with her scythe at the same spot, not letting the beast to heal itself. As the beast was about to attack her, volt snoops down and take mother away in a swift mother. "Great-mother, I'm glad I was there for you."

But the chimera didn't falter.

It spun, its tail whipping into Ye-Rin and knocking her into a wall. Sang-woo stepped over him in an instant, thrusting his spear at the creatures midsection.

He landed two solid hits one in the thigh, one in the shoulder but the beast just hissed and slammed its other arm down.

Sang-woo barely rolled away.

Too fast, too strong! he spat.We need to pin it!

I shot my webs on the chimera's eyes but it suddenly grabbed my tail using his tentacles, pulling it towards him. I chill ran into my spine. Then it swung me in circles before throwing me towards Seo-yeon.

Mother used false healing on us. She was still riding on the back of the volt. Volt attacked it with his thunder beam from all three of its heads but to its surprise, it didn't hurt him but it's arm was regenerating.

"This bastard's adapting!" Ji-Wan warned. "It's learning our patterns!"

The ground was chaotic.

The goblins are vicious, idiotic, fast, too many swarmed in with knives, chains, claws. Ji-Wan tracked their movement even from the edge, breath ragged, calling out targets.

In-Ji! "Right,your 3 o'clock!" Ji-wan screamed

"Got it!"

Gunfire lit the air.

Sang-woo fought like a man possessed, his spear dancing in wide arcs, his armor cracked and bloody.

"YOU. DON'T. TOUCH. HIM!"

He slammed a goblin into a door, crushed its skull with the spear butt.

Angered by how the chimera just used its electric beam attack to regenerate, Volt charges in for a close quarter combat. Even though the goblin was larger in size compared to Volt, it was being cornered and pinned by volt reckless charges.

Mother again used all three of her spells.

Seo-Yeon floated above the street barely holding herself in the air raining telekinetic rubble down like meteors. Other goblins couldn't reach her in the sky.

Ye-Rin swung again, cracking one of the chimera legs.

Sang-woo's spear pierced its stomach.

I webbed the beast body parts, preventing it from moving.. I leapt, driving both claws into its shoulder sockets, pinning it to the floor.

It screamed.

A mixture of lion, goblin, and whale. Sickening.

We were panting.

Bleeding.

In-ji fired a couple of shots as well. Right centre of its disgusted forehead.

The chimera staggered bleeding from ten wounds. It howled.

And then collapsed.

Goblins around us disappeared in a instant. No red dots on Ji-wan's HUD..Except for volt's red dot.

Everyone stood still.

Ji-Wan panted, holding the basketball close to his chest."We did it! we actually"

A blur.

That was all.

A flicker of green.

Then steel.

A clawed dagger sliced across Ji-Wan's neck.

He did not scream.

Just gasped eyes wide as blood sprayed across Sang-Ho chest.

The goblin with a claw necklace in his neck, the one holding Memory 1 grinned.

We all were too far from him.

It snatched the basketball from Ji-Wan limp hands.

And vanished.

No smoke. No teleport. Just gone.

Sang-woo caught Ji-Wan before he hit the ground. "No. No no, no Ji-Wan, stay with me. Stay with me, dammit"

I turned, eyes wide.

Seo-Yeon froze.

Mother.

Volt growled low, wings twitching.

The memory was gone.

And Ji-Wan was dead in Sang-woo arms.