The two human corpses lying among the ruins were clearly useless to the goblins now. Even the ogres, who were already full from feasting, showed no interest.
—
Suddenly—
A goblin sitting on the periphery, gnawing at some unknown beast bone, twitched its long pointed ears.Sensing something wrong, it turned its head vigilantly toward the bushes behind it.
In the next instant—
Terror filled the goblin's small yellow eyes.
A black figure burst out of the undergrowth like a phantom.
Before the goblin could even scream a warning—!
A flash of cold steel split the goblin in two, green blood splattering across the ground.
Minori's figure emerged from the blood spray, his iron sword gleaming under the forest's muted light.
"Fourfold Slash."
With a practiced twist of his wrist, Minori unleashed a flurry of strikes.
In the blink of an eye—
Four arcs of silver light cut through the air, precise and ruthless.
The four goblins closest to the perimeter fell before they even understood what had happened—their bodies pierced cleanly, twitching weakly on the ground.
Minori's sharp eyes quickly registered the results.
He could feel the slight surge of strength from slaying his enemies—a phenomenon that mimicked the familiar feedback from YGGDRASIL, yet carried a more visceral weight in this world.
Here, a wound meant pain. Blood loss.Injury led directly to weakness. A vital hit—instant death.
There were no hitpoints.No safety net.
Reality ruled absolutely.
Even though "Fourfold Slash" slightly scattered his power and accuracy, it was more than enough against these weak creatures.
A Warrior Captain's core technique—
In YGGDRASIL, it could fell veteran players.
Against these goblins, it was slaughter.
The goblins, stunned by the sudden massacre, finally reacted.
"Gyahh!"
"Gaah, aaah!!"
"Guwaaah!!"
Panic and terror exploded through the clearing.
Abandoning their half-eaten food, the goblins scrambled in all directions, squealing in terror.
But it was too late.
Goblins were cowardly by nature—and scattered fleeing was the worst possible choice.
Had they banded together, they might have posed some threat.But divided, they were merely prey.
Minori's black-clad figure weaved through them like a shadow.
Each time his sword swung, another goblin died.
Another life snuffed out in the blink of an eye.
Meanwhile—
The nearby ogre, disturbed by the chaos, finally reacted.
It bellowed a deafening roar, saliva spraying from its gaping mouth.Grabbing the enormous wooden club leaning against its crude hut, it stomped forward with earth-shaking steps.
Boom!
Boom!
Each footfall made the very ground tremble.
Yet Minori remained focused.
He continued slaughtering the goblins without panic, his movements growing even swifter.
He knew—
He had to eliminate the small fry first.He couldn't afford distraction when facing the real threat.
Thud!!
The ogre swung its massive club down with a furious roar.
But Minori was ready.
He evaded the strike effortlessly, the massive club slamming into the ground beside him with a heavy, shuddering impact.
At the same moment, Minori severed the spine of another fleeing goblin.
The ogre howled, its small, red eyes glaring with bloodlust.
"Human! Food!!"
It lunged again, swinging its club with wild fury, each swing stirring violent gusts of air.
But Minori's movements were crisp and calculated.
A simple clash of mobility and mass.
The ogre was powerful—But he was faster.
In less than a minute, the forest clearing fell into a grim silence.
Eighteen goblins lay scattered across the ground, their blood soaking into the earth.
Only Minori and the ogre remained.
Perhaps it was rage.Perhaps the weight of its injuries—or simply the fact it had gorged itself earlier—
The ogre was panting heavily, its chest heaving.
From its rotten wound, dark blood oozed sluggishly.
Its bloodshot eyes glared at Minori with primal hatred.
Minori stood about seven or eight meters away, casually resting his bloodied iron sword on his shoulder.
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
"Only the two of us left now."
He flicked his sword lightly, sending droplets of green goblin blood scattering onto the grass.
Based on the earlier exchanges—
Minori judged that this ogre was stronger than the two he had seen assault the Rock Team.
Even so—
Speed was on his side.
And if he played it right, the ogre's existing wounds and exhaustion would tip the scales even further.
Minori's expression grew cold as he recalled the beast devouring the bodies of dead humans.
Without hesitation, he gripped his iron sword with both hands.
The blade gleamed with a deadly light.
Tch.
Kicking off the ground, he launched himself forward in a straight line.
Seven meters.Five meters.Three—
He was in range.
The ogre's eyes widened in shock.
"Food!!" the monster bellowed.
It had not expected the human to charge it head-on.
With a guttural roar, the ogre swung its massive club with terrifying force, aiming to smash Minori flat.
The weapon's speed was tremendous, splitting the air with a howling shriek.
But—
Minori met it head-on.
"Quick Slash!"
He infused his next strike with all his power.
BOOM!!
The sword and the giant club collided in a deafening clash.
The impact sent a shockwave rippling outward, flattening the surrounding grass and sending a cloud of dust into the air.
Minori gritted his teeth.
The force of the impact numbed his arms, sending painful tremors up to his shoulders.
The ogre's strength—
was monstrous.
But Minori's blade held firm.
His "Quick Slash" technique amplified his strike by more than 110% damage, and combined with his enhanced "Slash Mastery" passive, the attack output rivaled that of a peak-tier warrior from YGGDRASIL.
And yet—
The ogre's raw physical might still matched or even surpassed it.