Chapter 14 – The Return (Part 1)

 

The moment Ervena nervously picked up the arrow, I pushed her forward.

"Huh?"

Ervena, who had been suddenly pushed from behind, took a step forward, and at that moment, the essence floating in the air came into contact with her skin.

*Shaaaa!*

The essence emitted light and woven into Erwena's body.

"You crazy bastard!"

So that's what these bastards wanted.

"I said!" Hold still!

Soon, a group of four researchers appeared 10 yards away.

But, look. The essence had already been absorbed by this elf. I hid my nervousness and took a decisive step forward.

"Why should I listen to you?"

"This essence was ours!"

I imagined another scene unfolding in which I had not fed Erwen the essence. Perhaps they would have forced us to give it up on ridiculous grounds. Perhaps they would have said that they themselves caught the monster with an arrow from afar, or some other reason they wanted to use.

"If you want to fight, let's do it." I'll fight you as long as you want.

Four against two. Although we were in the minority, I answered decisively.

This principle was similar to that of small dogs barking loudly to avoid a fight as much as possible. Humans are like animals in that when someone looks down on them, they bite.

The redhead, who seemed to be the leader of the group, silently gritted his teeth.

True, I'm sure they had the brains to think. It didn't look like the essence was still floating in the air. Its owner has already been determined, so there is no use in fighting us.

Therefore, it would be wiser to give up and leave...

— ... I demand compensation.

Or prefer whining.

Seeing the essence disappear in front of his eyes must have been a great disappointment. Although, there is no reason for me to be attentive to this.

"We took the essence that we earned. What kind of compensation are you talking about?

"Is there any evidence?" That goblin was ours.

I was not too lazy to ask:

"And do you have any evidence of that?"

It was obvious that there were none. There are no CCTV cameras in the labyrinth. In the end, whoever is stronger is right.

"I repeat, if you want to fight, then go ahead. I will not avoid it.

I replied stubbornly, leaving no room for argument.

If you are going to attack, then go ahead, if you are going to talk, then fail.

I didn't even give them time to think.

"I'll give you 3 seconds. If you do not make a decision before then, we will consider you enemies.

"Uncle...?"

Read the mood, Ervena. Don't move. Don't you see that they are all frightened by how strong I look?

— 3.

— 2.

"We'll leave."

The man made a choice before I counted to 1. Seriously, even I, if a tattooed barbarian of that size was counting down the seconds, would do the same.

If the essence really belonged to them, their eyes would burn with rage. But they knew better that it was not theirs. Soon they disappeared from our sight.

"Are they gone?"

— Да. Думаю, да.

"We'll accelerate until we reach the portal. Lead us.

Hearing my words, Ervena cleared the road as fast as if she were riding a horse. She knew too. Although there was no bloodshed, it was not the end of the situation.

"Are there any traces of those guys?"

"I don't feel them. Oh, there's a group of goblins for 3 o'clock, what should I do?

"Ignore.

"Good.

Initially, I planned to return to a leisurely hunt for goblins, but plans have changed.

We were going to get out of the 2nd floor as soon as possible. And if possible, go down to the 1st floor and get as far away from the portal as possible.

Hearing my plan, Ervena tilted her head.

"Are they really going to follow us to the 1st floor?"

"They won't follow." It's just that our destination is the same.

"What does that mean?"

It was a simple guess. They were a group of four. Four people are more than enough for active activities at the front of the 2nd floor. But they were moving towards the entrance, not the outskirts. Their intentions were clear.

"It is likely that they plan to return to the 1st floor on the 7th day to then return to the city. That is why we met them there.

"Oh...

Simply put, like us, these guys were a motley bunch who ended up on the 2nd floor just to get a taste of it.

That is why, although they outnumbered us twice, they got scared and ran away. Perhaps it wasn't even a real team, but just a group of people who accidentally met on the 1st floor.

"I see...

At my next words, Ervena nodded quietly. Although I don't know if she understood correctly.

"You're really amazing!"

... Probably not.

"I'll only do what you tell me!"

Well, maybe that was for the best. The rotation of the rusty gears in the head should have led to even more trouble.

"Uncle, goblins!"

"Avoid it.

"But it looks like they've already found us. They're running here right now!

"What?"

As soon as I heard this, a feeling of despair came over me. From day 4 until now, the goblins had never been the first to discover us. In this sense, Ervena's abilities were excellent. Even if we were now running somewhere, it could not be a coincidence.

Besides, she had just absorbed the essence.

"Let's go in the opposite direction for now.

"Good!"

At my command, Ervena turned.

And at this moment...

*Whoosh!*

The arrows burst out of the direction from which we turned. As soon as I saw this, I yanked Ervena by the collar.

"Eek!"

Ervena moaned because her airways were clogged, but... Suffocating for a short time was better than getting stabbed in the neck.

*Bam!*

As soon as I picked up Ervena and used the shield to cover his upper body, the arrow bounced off him.

Although the arrows bounced at an angle, they could still be felt on the shield. Could it be that bastard with the crossbow?

"I could—" to avoid this... itself...

Ervena squeaked something.

I'm sorry, but I don't have time to listen to you.

"Just run.

I started running after Ervena in front again.

"Uncle, if the arrow flies again, don't pull me like -"

"Shut up." I think," I said in a low voice, and Ervena said nothing.

I continued to ponder as we ran, and carefully observed my surroundings. I didn't know how they did it, but these guys lured the goblins here. Then they must have ambushed us from the opposite direction and tried to lure us into a trap.

Even if we escape, can we reach the portal safely? No way.

I tried to predict the probability that we would get to the portal, but I realized that it was extremely small.

They had a crossbow. The goblins will also continue to chase us.

If we're lucky, despite all this, we can get out alive... But I knew that I would not be lucky.

"We must fight.

We had time to catch our breath. During this time, I came to a conclusion.

"Erwena, use your strength.

"Strength?"

"Use the power of the essence.

The essence contained the special abilities of each monster it dropped from.

For example

[Goblin Archer]

Agility +2

Flexibility +4

Vision +6

Sense of Smell +2

Perception +2

Cognitive Hindrance +6

Accuracy +8

Poison Resistance +4

Obsession +7

(P) Poison Arrow - When using a bow weapon, you deal poison damage.

(A) Thief's Step - Enter Stealth Mode.

In the game, the information was displayed as follows.

Stats increase, one passive (P) and one active (A).

This information will be valid in this world as well. So far, there have been some changes, such as monsters, starting points, etc., but these areas have at least always been consistent with the game.

"But I don't know how to use it...

Ervena was amazed at my unreasonable request. I smiled.

"Good.

"What do you mean?"

"That means you're already in stealth mode.

As Ervena ran, her body became cloudy. Despite this, the effect was faint and noticeable from afar, but...

"Stop."

When I stopped her movement, the invisibility effect intensified.

So that's why the characters in the game moved slowly.

As time passed, her body turned from translucent to almost transparent. Although there was a distinct disproportion in the outline, it would not be noticeable except at close range.

Especially in this dark forest.

Ervena looked down at her body and exclaimed.

"Wow...

It fascinated me too. Although I was fascinated by something completely different.

Without a command or anything like that, she activated the skill of her own free will. Anyway, let's explore that in more detail later.

"Ervena." Take it.

"Huh?"

I handed her a backpack.

And he quickly added,

"You'll hide here, and when I give you the signal, you'll be the first to shoot at the marksman with your crossbow." Don't go out until then. Got it?

"What?" What do you mean?

"I don't have time. I will assume that you understand.

I quickly finished what I wanted to say and immediately started running.

"Wait, signal?!" What kind of signal?!

I heard a soft scream behind me, but it was too risky to go back.

*Step*

After walking about 30 yards from the starting position, I stopped. I had no intention of going far. If I kept going like this and ended up stepping on a trap, it would be a big problem.

"Grk, grk!"

Turning around, I heard the goblins rush to attack from the front left.

And those cowardly researchers... they were not yet visible.

After I blocked the first arrow, they didn't appear again. But I wasn't too worried. It was obvious what those bastards were thinking.

"Grk, grk!"

If I start fighting the goblins, they will definitely appear. They lured the goblins here with this plan. When I returned to the present, I watched the goblins swarming around.

"Grghhhhh!!

Out of 10 goblins, 2 are swordsmen. Fortunately, there are no archers among them—...

*Klang!*

I was wrong. I ran towards the goblins, fighting off the arrows flying at my shield. Of course, I couldn't run like I used to. Not only was I chased by a goblin archer, but also by a human crossbowman.

*Klang!*

About 10 seconds later, the arrow flew again.

Once again, it belonged to a goblin archer.

*Klang!*

Blocking the arrow with my shield, I smashed the head of the goblin swordsman wielding the scimitar. In response, another goblin plunged a carving knife into my leg.

*Piercing!*

Well, I had to take that risk. The number of goblins should decrease, but researchers will also begin to get impatient and appear.

*Удар! Удар! Удар!*

Knocking the goblins down like an obsessed barbarian, the number of my wounds gradually increased... Forearm, thigh, ribs, and so on.

Each of them wasn't a major injury in itself, but as they piled up, I couldn't ignore them.

*Blow!*

The poison began to circulate and the tingling sensation spread from the injured areas. But despite this, I killed all seven goblins. Then,

*Whoosh!*

Arrows flew at me. Two at the same time.

*Whoosh!*

Their direction was also different. One was from a goblin archer, and the other was from a crossbowman.

It was difficult to block both. I decided to block the crossbowman's arrows flying from the side with my shield.

*Bam!*

The sound of the blow was different from the sound of a goblin archer being shot.

Is it really a crossbow?

While I was thinking about it...

*Blow!*

With a sound piercing my skin, the goblin's arrow pierced my left elbow.

"Shit.

It hurts.

Could it be that the arrow hit the bone? Pain was one thing, but because of one arrow, my arm could not move at all now.

Hell, I tried to deflect it by protecting my shoulder, but it turned out to be harder than I thought.

*Rumble*

Without hesitation, I threw away the hammer in my right hand and raised my shield instead. My left arm, which held the shield, was now paralyzed. If I had to choose between a hammer and a shield, a shield was always the best option.

Especially in this situation.

*Удар! Удар! Удар!*

Holding the shield in one hand, I struck at the three remaining goblins, after which my surroundings became clearer. The goblin archer must have run away because the arrows stopped coming.

It was a wounded victory in the first round, but I survived.

I shouted,

"Come out, you sons of!"

I didn't know I'd say this to a human and not to a goblin. Well, I guess they were the same.

*Whoosh!*

Instead of coming out, an arrow flew out from afar. It was a human crossbow.

As I expected, it was not difficult to block it.

However...

*Bam!*

Damn, what is it? I thought.

The arrow pierced the iron plate of the shield, pointing the tip in my direction.

One wrong move, and it can hurt my hand.

As I covered my upper body with my shield and peeked out from behind the bushes, I heard a voice calling out to me.

— Barbarian.

Three of them appeared.

A red-haired man and supposed leader, a samurai with a single-edged sword similar to a Japanese, and a very thin man with a one-handed sword and shield.

The crossbowman was still invisible.

"So it was you.

"Yes, it was us.

How did they lure the goblins? I didn't ask those questions, because if I did, I knew they would look down on me.

"Go ahead.

"A real barbarian. You're full of energy even after dealing with so many goblins on your own. Where is this elf bitch?

I wondered why they talk so much. So that was their goal.

"It looks like you even gave away your backpack. If you don't want more problems, you'd better post it.

As soon as I heard this, I smirked and burst out laughing.

If I tell you, will you let me go? yes, of course. Am I a brainless fool?!

"Crazy bastard.

The leader frowned when he saw my laughter. His face looked like he had had enough. Obviously, I looked like an ordinary barbarian to him.

"In that case, we'll subdue you first, and then we'll ask you again.

The leader exchanged a glance with his comrades, and they slowly walked towards each other.

Capture the enemy, yes... It was nice to hear.

However, even if they kill me, the profits will not be balanced. There could be any number of reasons why they set up an ambush.

The mana gems we collected in 7 days, the equipment we wore, Erwena's pretty face, or revenge for having to watch someone else's luck under their noses.

I realized again...

"Everybody be careful. Think of it as hunting a big monster.

Seriously, there were too many efficiency freaks in this world.

Probably, I will become like that too.

I slowly raised my hand. I made my left arm, which was now paralyzed by a poisonous arrow stuck in the elbow, rise above my head.

And then...

"What are you doing?"

I held up my middle finger high.

*Whoosh!*

Anyone who lived in this world would know that this was a unique signal.

*In here-!*

Soon, a faint sound echoed through the forest.