Under the moonlight, we all stood together, facing that goblin directly as he stared back at us. I couldn't see his facial features due to the darkness and distance, but I was certain—this was the goblin we were looking for... Daemon. I gripped my sword tightly and stepped back after spotting Miro charging toward him at full speed.
As always, he held his axe firmly while running and yelling. At this moment, Daemon leaped into the air and landed smoothly, dashing toward Miro with his black-bladed dagger. Fuck, I don't feel good about this. Miro raised his axe in his right hand and held his shield in his left, waiting for Daemon to reach him, realizing that his opponent was much faster.
When Daemon got close, he swung his dagger, aiming for Miro's face. But Miro managed to save himself just in time, raising his shield to block the goblin's strike. He then lifted his axe high and let out a fierce roar as he attempted to bring it down on his opponent. In the blink of an eye, Daemon moved like a shadow, skillfully evading the attack. With incredible agility, he leaped and landed a direct kick to Miro's face. This fight... it's not going to be as easy as I expected.
"Come on, Miro! We just need to land one hit!" Grell shouted, watching the fight closely.
Just give the signal already. There's no way Miro can wound this goblin. My god... can a monster evolve this much? He's no longer just an ordinary goblin. He's... a Goblin Champion! Miro wiped the blood dripping from his nose and steadied himself in his stance. Meanwhile, Daemon took a few steps back, flashing a terrifying grin. That's when I finally got a good look at his face.
He was ugly, just like any other goblin, but his features were simpler. He had a relatively small nose and round pupils. If he keeps evolving, will he eventually become human or what? When he realized he had gained some distance from Miro, he suddenly threw his dagger straight at his opponent's face. Fuck! It's going to hit him!
"Miro!" I shouted suddenly.
At the last moment, Miro managed to stop the dagger with his shield. He then hurled his axe swiftly at Daemon, but—damn it—there was no one there. Miro had aimed at nothing. The moment Daemon had thrown his dagger, he had already started running toward Miro. And now, he was right behind him. In a terrifying instant, Daemon swung his clawed hand toward Miro's neck. FUCK! He's trying to pierce his throat!
At this moment, a burst of blood splattered... Mi... No! That's not Miro's blood—it's that fucking goblin's! Just as Miro lost his axe, he pulled out another one from his waist and spun around at an incredible speed, slashing at Daemon. That's tuff! Even though his attack didn't fully connect—thanks to Daemon's quick reflexes—he still managed to wound him at his side.
"YES!" I shouted, feeling a surge of excitement.
"Ponier! Penny!!" Grell suddenly yelled.
Support rushed in, their animal ears twitching. They looked incredible, moving in sync while wielding their twin weapons. They charged at Daemon, giving him no time to react. So this is Grell's plan, huh? Daemon quickly pulled out another dagger and blocked Penny's attack. Before he could strike her again, Ponier landed a powerful kick on him. That was perfect!
Daemon immediately retreated, climbing onto a rocky elevation. Is he trying to regain his strength? Did he realize how strong we are? He sat there, and for a moment, he looked terrifying—perched at the peak with his black cloak fluttering in the wind, the massive round moon glowing behind him. It was a truly eerie sight. Then, I heard the stretching of Grell's bowstring.
"Take this!" Grell shouted as he fired an arrow at the calmly seated Daemon. There's no way that'll hit him!
After a while, Daemon descended again, seemingly trying to ease the pain of his wound. The three of them pounced on him immediately. What a terrifying monster—despite their numbers, he was still able to dodge all their attacks effortlessly. He was avoiding everything. Then, in a brief opening, he managed to land a devastating punch to Ponier's face.
Ponier collapsed to the ground, and Daemon leaped toward him, dagger in hand. Alright, this is my chance!
"Water Slash!" I unleashed a slash after switching my sword to its second form.
The slash sped forward as Daemon soared over Ponier's body. Come on! That's in!! At the last moment, Daemon noticed my slash and pulled off a fucking impossible move. With ridiculous speed, he balanced himself on one hand and used all his strength to propel his body upward. My slash was now nothing more than a mist of water dispersing into the air.
While airborne, he flung a dagger straight at me. Yes... he was incredibly fast, and it was aimed directly at my forehead. What kind of insane accuracy is this? The throw was so swift that all I could do was think about dodging rather than reacting in any way. Then, I heard the clash of blades—Daemon's dagger was deflected by a short sword. A sword I knew all too well.
"That was close. Wake up, you fool," Ponier muttered.
Out of everyone, he was the only one who noticed the dagger heading for my forehead and managed to block the attack by striking it with his sword. Crazy... where did he suddenly gain such skill? Is everyone an expert marksman now or what?!
I tossed the sword back to Ponier, and the three of them stood together again, facing that fucking strong goblin. Should I jump in, or leave it to them? I want to unleash some attacks. If I hit him, I should be able to deal serious damage, right?
After a moment, Penny rushed at him, gripping her daggers in both hands. Suddenly, she leaped high into the air. But Daemon didn't follow her with his eyes—his focus remained on the body advancing toward him after Penny's jump. Miro.
So, she's trying to distract him so Miro can attack. But unfortunately, Daemon realized that. Come on, who would fall for such an obvious trick? Miro is the size of an elephant—of course, he'd see him. Daemon pulled out yet another dagger. Damn! How many does he have??!! He dodged Miro's attack and tried to stab his opponent's neck.
"Miro!!" Grell suddenly shouted from behind me.
The sound of stabbing echoed. But fortunately, he missed Miro's neck and instead stabbed his shoulder. Fuck, that's going to leave a deep wound. Penny and Ponier quickly rushed toward Daemon to stop him from delivering another attack on the injured Miro. Damn it, I need to step in!
"Miro, retreat immediately and drink a health potion to ease the pain!!" Grell shouted, his voice echoing through the area.
Then Miro pulled back, leaving Penny and Ponier to fight the evolved goblin. This battle! This isn't normal. No! Nothing about this is normal! How is a fight against a Tier 3 goblin this difficult???!!! No, the real question is... How is this monster Tier 3?!!! The same tier as Herboaz... Is this guild out of their fucking minds?! This is a slaughter quest, plain and simple. How can they send rookie adventurers to take down this thing?!
"Miro, come here—I can heal you," I said, suddenly remembering that I could use a healing spell.
Miro sat on the ground and started drinking one of his potions. I reached out toward his stabbed shoulder, inhaling and exhaling before placing my palm over the wound. I tried to do as I had before—imagining the wound closing with the desire to heal it... Nothing happened. The green light didn't flow like before. What? Is it because I haven't been praying? Did the spell disappear??!!
"Hurry up, Laos!" Miro urged.
"Fuck, I don't think I can use the spell!!" I exclaimed in shock.
"Didn't you use it before?" Miro asked.
Then I remembered. I recalled that I had used it before after I closed Ponier's wound. FUCK!!!! Why, why, why??!! How careless of me... How did I waste a healing spell so foolishly? I forgot that I've only been praying for two weeks, so I can use only one healing spell per day! Fuck! I'm so careless!!!
"Laos, take Miro's place!" Grell shouted loudly.
"Sorry, Miro..." I muttered as I ran toward that goblin, feeling a huge sense of frustration... This is really embarrassing. What a failure I am.
"It's fine, man," Miro muttered as he wrapped his torn shirt around his wound.
Alright, let's go, Laos! I ran to the place where the fight had intensified between the three of them. They were fast, and all I could hear were the sounds of blades clashing. Then, Daemon kicked Penny in the face with such force that her nose started bleeding, and she was thrown back. At the same moment, he tried to stab Ponier's face as he quickly turned toward him. That's fast! And just as his dagger neared Ponier's right cheek, I shouted, "Water Slash!!"
I could feel that this one was different from the previous ones. It's stronger and faster... Thanks, Thalesa. In the blink of an eye, I managed to hit Daemon's dagger precisely, and if he hadn't pulled his hand back, I would have severed it. This slash was enough to break the dagger. Then Ponier stepped back, glared at Daemon, and gave me a funny smile as if saying, "We're even."
"Laos, fight from a distance. Try using the Cold Needle, and if he attacks you, kill him with the Sea Blade," Thalesa's voice suddenly echoed.
"Alright!"
Penny got up and returned to the fight, but it seemed like she was badly injured and couldn't even run like she did before. I switched Astral's sword to its third form and launched a series of spikes, but unfortunately, none of them hit Daemon. However, Ponier seized the opportunity and rushed at Daemon, trying to stab him with his two short swords. In that moment, Daemon jumped back, leaving Ponier alone.
"Ponier, try to slow him down, I'll shoot!" I shouted.
Then Ponier and Penny both followed, but should I shoot now?! I think he's deciding whether to run again or fight us... No way! Then I heard another stabbing sound, and saw some blood spraying in the air. A body then fell to the ground. It was Penny—damn!
"Penny!!" Grell shouted at the same time.
After that, Daemon moved with lightning speed and made Ponier his next prey. He quickly bent down, and his intention was clear: to land and kick Ponier's feet out from under him. Come on, you fucking fox! This is easy to predict—just avoid his kick! But it seems my hopes were all crushed... Damn it!