hunting is always good - end
This was their last chance to attack and destroy the goblin camp—and to claim all the good stuff inside.
Everyone nodded, confident that this time would be much easier than the first.
The way they walked made their confidence clear—written all over their faces and their firm strides.
The formation was identical to the first incursion, with absolutely nothing changed.
As they approached the gate, they saw goblins everywhere: some were picking up their broken, crude weapons from the ground, while others simply wandered aimlessly.
The tank was the first to enter the camp, a wide grin on his face—though his helmet hid how excited he really was.
BAM! BAM!
He slammed the ladder against his shield again, drawing the goblins' attention.
As expected, upon hearing the signal, the green monsters' eyes lit up with rage—as if they'd just seen a Jehovah's Witness on a Sunday at 6 a.m.
Oddly enough, the number of goblins had dropped to about fifty. Apparently, some had died during the "vacation," among other things.
— Looks like they're not shy anymore this time. joked Med, smirking.
— I just hope they don't all rush me again. replied the useless mage, shivering.
The ten-meter distance was quickly closed. Carlos sheathed his sword and gripped the shield with both hands.
He charged into the sea of goblins.
BOOM!!! BOOM!!!
Several green monsters were pushed back by the sheer force of Carlos, the tank. The unluckiest had their legs broken as he charged forward like a furious bull.
Following their usual strategy, the damage dealers positioned themselves, striking quickly—this time aiming for critical points, trying to speed up the slaughter.
With many goblins down and limbs broken, Med automatically volunteered as the team's butcher. He left his magic beast on the front line and started executing the wounded one by one.
Magic Beast HP: 40/100
The tamer wasn't worried. The goblins were almost finished, and the boss hadn't even shown up yet.
"Trying to hit specific spots is way too hard... And that useless mage does nothing but wants to boss everyone around," he thought, swinging his whip.
SNAP!
His weapon wrapped around the neck of a goblin just twenty centimeters away, yanking it violently forward.
He sprinted, tightening the whip even more in his grip, strangling the creature.
Without slowing, he reached the goblin and kicked it straight in the face.
Crack!
The goblin's neck snapped like a dry twig.
It was obvious: Carlos was close to leveling up.
He now fought with both weapons at once, one in each hand, sweeping the field like a tornado.
A goblin appeared from the left, holding half a wooden spear and tried to stab him—but Carlos reacted instinctively, raising his shield.
CLANG!
The sound echoed across the field.
Carlos kept running—brutally pushing the goblin back.
At the same time, another goblin, now missing an arm, jumped over him.
Unlucky again.
SWISH!!!
Carlos spun in a full 360-degree circle, and his blade sliced the goblin in half like hot butter through meat.
The one that had been shoved back was still alive and tried the same cowardly move again...
But the rat-man appeared out of nowhere, grabbing the creature's skinny leg.
— Forget about us? he asked with a sharp grin.
Carlos let out a maniacal laugh as the system voice echoed in his ears:
Congratulations, player, for leveling up!!!
Level 2 successfully reached!!!
Just like with Med, all his stats were doubled.
But he ignored the notifications, still boiling with adrenaline, and rushed back into the fight.
— COME AT ME ALL AT ONCE! he roared.
His voice echoed through the entire goblin camp, taunting the enemies like a warlord hungry for more.
Monster HP: 00/100
Monster HP: 00/100
Monster HP: 00/100
Monster HP: 00/100
The once endless sea of goblins had been cut in half. Of course, the attackers had taken some damage too.
But unlike the goblins, who watched their comrades drop like flies, the human team supported each other at all costs.
Everything changed, however, when a sinister roar ripped through the battlefield, like it came from a demon—or worse.
GRRRRRRR!!!
— About time. thought Lily, sprinting out of the goblin camp.
Immediately, the remaining goblins panicked. They scattered in all directions, fleeing into the forest like terrified rats.
The team quickly regrouped, positioning themselves beside the tank, ready.
— So... anyone got an idea what the hell just happened? asked Med, looking around.
Obviously, no one had an answer.
— Who cares who invented the cockroach? What matters is this: the boss of this dump is more screwed than a newbie in a pyramid scheme. said Robinson, laughing.
Med looked at him but chose not to answer. Instead, he turned his gaze to the enemy.
The goblin leader was none other than a hobgoblin. But this one looked different—wounded, exhausted. His injuries were worse than the regular goblins', and he didn't even have a right eye.
— Empolgo-Man's got a point... Let's take advantage and finish this thing. said Carlos, stepping forward so hard the dust rose around him.
And so began the final assault.
Carlos charged toward the hobgoblin. The green monster did the same, and the 15-meter distance vanished in a blink.
Naturally, the hobgoblin was faster.
BOOM! BOOM!
Carlos raised his shield to defend, but the enemy's strikes were far too strong for his current level.
The impact flung him backward like an old rag doll.
The other three only saw Carlos's figure flying across the battlefield—he was launched outside the camp, right past the useless mage.
"PERFECT!" she screamed internally.
That's what she wanted: action—not to be a spectator. It thrilled her. Her body trembled with excitement.
Meanwhile, the attackers tried to hold their ground.
The werewolf lunged from the right, delivering quick and precise strikes.
But they were all dodged—as if the hobgoblin was dealing with flies.
The monster looked at the magic beast with its one eye and swung a direct blow.
SWISH!
But before it could hit, a sharp pain flared in its left side.
— Hello. whispered Victor with a slight smile, his "fist" still pressed against the creature's flesh.
The monster twisted to counter, but was hit by several strikes to the back, breaking its momentum.
The fighter backed up a few steps, keeping a two-meter distance.
But of course, that meant nothing to a monster over level 2.
The rat-man also pulled back, aligning himself with the tamer.
They exchanged a quick glance—enough to settle a plan.
— Med, handle the right side. Put your beast to tank while Yumi and I focus on the...
— Huh...?...
The ground shook violently, as if an earthquake had started.
The fight paused. Everyone—even the hobgoblin—looked around, trying to understand what the hell was happening.
Of course, it could only be Lily and Carlos, sprinting back toward the paused battlefield.
— YOU SON OF A BITCH, YOU BROUGHT THAT THING ON ME?! screamed the mage, panicked.
The tank, slightly ahead, glanced back. All his heroic aura was gone.
She clutched her staff awkwardly and carried her witch hat in her hand, totally disfigured by fear.
— WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO DO, DAMN IT?! THAT SHIT CAME OUT OF NOWHERE! I FROZE! CAST SOMETHING ON IT, YOU USELESS WITCH! he shouted back.
She didn't even respond. She didn't want to look back—didn't want to face the monster chasing them.
— LURE IT TO THE HOBGOBLIN. MAKE THEM FIGHT, THEN WE KILL BOTH. she suggested, aiming forward.
And chasing them like a maniac stalker was... a Treant.
Yep. A damn Treant. Carlos had the misfortune of falling—literally—on one that had been asleep.
— I'LL DRAW ITS ATTENTION! YOU RUN AS FAST AS YOU CAN, DEAL? said Carlos, accepting the inevitable.
She nodded, waiting for the signal.
Once he gave it, she stopped and turned, sticking her butt out toward the Treant.
— COME ON, DUMBASS! COME SMACK MY BUTT! she shouted, laughing and flipping the bird.
The tree-monster didn't hesitate.
SWISH!!
A branch hit him—right where he wanted.
Player HP: 50/100
He was launched again, flying past the hobgoblin by another meter.
— HAHAHA.
The werewolf had less than 10% HP left—a real problem. Losing it meant less offensive power.
The three attackers—Victor, Robinson, and Med—were still fighting their old enemy.
Victor on the left, rat-man on the right, tamer up front.
— Med, your beast's basically dead. Send it at the Treant to bait the hobgoblin too. said the rat-man.
No one moved at first, then Med finally gave the order.
But it didn't go as planned.
The hobgoblin completely ignored the beast and rushed straight at the tamer.
"WHAT THE FUC..."
He barely had time to react. The distance vanished in seconds.
The green monster's punch hit him in the face, twisting his body like a broken spring.
His head hit the ground hard, but worse was coming. The system message popped:
Magic Beast eliminated
Player HP: 30/100
"Four people here and *I'm* the only one this bastard hits? What the fuck..."
The goblin leader *knew* he couldn't hold on much longer. His body was failing.
Behind him: three enemies. In front: one more on the ground... and just beyond, a monstrous tree.
— MED, YOU AIRHEAD, JUST RUN! shouted Lily, hidden in the trees.
— How the hell am I supposed to do that?. he muttered, pissed.
Getting whipped by a Treant was too humiliating.
— YOU IDIOT, CRAWL LIKE A WORM THEN RUN! she yelled again.
Meanwhile, Victor, Carlos, and Robinson watched, waiting for the perfect moment.
The Treant had stopped, and the hobgoblin now chased Med.
— We can't hit the hobgoblin from behind because of the tree. It's just waiting. said Carlos.
— The goblin leader's one critical hit from death... we'll deal with the tree after we level. Three level 2s vs a level 4—we got this. Victor calculated.
— Shaolin's ready for the trick. Gotta be quick though. said Robinson.
— Not our first time doing this. I got it down. Victor smirked.
Right as he finished, he and the rat-man charged the enemy.
The five-meter gap closed in a flash.
Victor landed two punches to the back of the neck, but the goblin countered with a kick to his chest, knocking him back.
At the same time, Robinson leapt at the monster's blind spot, biting and clawing at weak points.
Monster HP: 20/100
"Die, you bastard," Robinson thought.
But the goblin fought back. Grabbing the rat-man's tail, it started pounding him, trying to shake him off.
Player HP: 50/100
Med was still crawling to the right, trying to get away from the chaos.
Carlos watched as both the hobgoblin's and his friend's HP dropped.
Monster HP: 9/100
Player HP: 15/100
"It's time," he thought.
He opened the party menu:
Shaolin Pork-Slayer's Party
¶• Red Butterfly
¶• Yumi
¶• Empolgo-man
¶• Med
¶• Shaolin Pork-Slayer (Host)
He selected the tamer's name:
¶• Med
Remove from party?
Yes/No
Smiling, he clicked the obvious choice:
YES
Player successfully removed from party!!
His eyes fell on poor Med, who stopped crawling.
"He must've seen the notification… He served his purpose from the start," Carlos thought, before charging the enemy.
Meanwhile, Victor and Robinson kept pounding the same weak points.
BOOM! BOOM!
The attacks were clean and brutal.
"Why isn't he reacting...?" Victor wondered, looking at the Treant.
But the thought vanished as the hobgoblin hurled the rat-man away.
Monster HP: 2/100
— YOU FUCKERS! TRAITORS!!!. screamed the tamer, right before being crushed by the Treant.
"So that was it... he wanted the hobgoblin at low HP to finish it off. Bastard," thought Victor, advancing.
Then the tree's branches rose and whipped furiously.
— Shit. muttered the fighter.
SWISH!!!
Congratulations, player, for leveling up!!!
Level 2 reached!
Buff for defeating a monster 5 levels above: +20 ATTACK
Attack: 40 > 60
00:59:59...
New title unlocked: Goblin Pioneers!
First to clear a goblin camp alone and walk away!
+5 to all stats while in a forest.
— HAHAHA!!!
Victor snapped out of it at the familiar laugh—Carlos, who had thrown his short sword at the last second.
But it was far from over.
Essence Tower unlock conditions fulfilled!!!
— WHAT?! shouted the four friends.
A white light enveloped everything around them, and they were all teleported.