Chapter 20: I Am Invincible
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 20: I Am Invincible
Since Garond was incapable of stealth, we decided he would wait at the cave entrance. Goblin dens are riddled with branching paths, and there was a high probability that some might try to flee the cave.
There was even the chance they might try to escape with their young or, worse, their prisoners. It was best to have someone guarding the exit.
"Can you really see well right now...?"
"Yes. I can see perfectly in the dark."
"Hieee...! Your left eye is glowing..."
"It’s because of the Direwolf eyeball."
"Ugh, why is that even in there...?"
"I liked it, so I plucked it out and popped it in."
"Eww..."
Even in the darkness, I could see Lis grimacing. It was just a joke, but she really seemed to hate it. Of course, I wasn't going in like this; we were just making small talk before Isolde lit the lantern she’d brought.
Whoosh—
"Phew, finally I can see something..."
Lis was surprisingly talkative.
Isolde held the lit lantern in her hand as we walked. I took the lead, Isolde brought up the rear, and Lis was in the middle. I could maintain a clear field of vision even in low-light conditions.
With the lantern positioned between Lis and Isolde, we advanced slowly.
"Look at this. It’s an iron sword."
As we navigated the cave, we found an iron one-handed sword that was clearly man-made. Isolde picked it up, inspected the blade from hilt to tip, and spoke.
"There are signs of goblin use. The blade is covered in nicks, as if it’s been swung randomly at rocks or trees. There’s a good chance a Goblin Warrior is around."
"Are they strong?"
"Elite goblin variants aren't particularly powerful."
Higher-tier goblins like Shamans or Warriors are slightly different from the leaders. The true leader of a pack is a Goblin Lord; Warriors and Shamans are more like local bullies.
As we followed the winding path, a tunnel branching off to the right appeared. I signaled to Isolde, and she immediately closed the lantern's cover to block the light. I pressed my ear against the edge of the right-hand curve.
"Something’s coming. Three... no, four of them."
"What do we do...?"
"It won't be a problem. We're breaking through."
Lis and Isolde nodded at my words. Judging by the flickering light coming from the right tunnel, they were carrying torches.
I immediately flipped the lantern cover up to shine the light and rounded the corner in an instant, swinging my sword at the approaching goblins. It wasn't my new sword, but the one I’d used before. I felt a bit hesitant to use the new one yet—it felt like a waste.
Slice—
"Hup!"
I cut down two of them in a flash and kicked another. Its corpse slammed into the wall with a loud thud. I swung my gauntleted left hand at the remaining one, gifting it an orbital fracture.
"That made a lot of noise. We have no choice but to blitz through."
"Fine! I was getting tired of whispering anyway!"
Lis said as she notched an arrow. Isolde nodded in agreement, and we charged forward. When the path split in two, we chose the right-hand side.
"Seven ahead. Lis, save your arrows."
"Got it!"
I summoned my shield in my left hand and charged at high speed, leading with it. I plowed through the clustered goblins with the shield, diving into their center, and immediately spun 360 degrees, carving them down.
"Yoo Eon! You’re incredible!"
"Am I?"
My body definitely felt much lighter now that it was night. With my lungs and heart performing at peak efficiency, it felt like my brain was processing everything faster.
My senses were razor-sharp, detecting danger before it arrived. I easily dodged their crude but threatening weapons—pointed wooden spears and stone axes—simply by staying alert.
My heart was pounding fast, but I wasn't out of breath at all. I suppose this was nothing for the strength of an Alpha.
"Moving fast. Keep up."
The noise had already been made. In the silence of the cave, those sounds would have alerted the others; it was only a matter of time. Instead of moving cautiously, we had to strike hard and fast to finish them before they could swarm us.
"Let's go, Excalibur No. 1."
I bestowed the magnificent title of 'Excalibur' upon my favorite longsword. From now on, every time this beauty left its sheath, it would unleash a twin-slaughter upon these wicked monsters.
Lis and Isolde didn't seem weak enough to fall to a few goblins. More importantly, I functioned better without the lantern light. As far as I knew, goblins didn't particularly have good night vision.
CRACK—
I kicked down a door made of crude wooden planks and scanned the interior.
There were faint light sources like torches, but my eyes were quick to adapt.
"Kyaraaaak!!"
"Kerk, kererk...!"
Sixteen hideous goblins were gathered in a fairly large space, messily devouring the carcass of a Direwolf. These bastards... how dare they eat my friend?
The Direwolf might have felt differently about our relationship, but I had already decided we were friends.
"You've lived long enough. Time to go home."
With my old shortsword and shield in my left hand and Excalibur No. 1 in my right, I began a merciless dance of blades.
As the sacred power within Excalibur traced a line through the air, two goblins were instantly bisected.
Actually, they were now 'late' goblins. I used the old sword in my left hand to smash the shafts of the stone spears lunging at me, then used Excalibur in my right to split their heads in half.
Even though the sword was metal, hitting bone isn't great for its durability. But I didn't have time for such thoughts. As I danced with my blades in the center of the pack, the survivors soon found themselves backed against the walls, trembling as they watched me.
"You pieces of shit. Even your blood smells like garbage."
These goblins had the physical strength of a young elementary schooler. Realizing I didn't even need to try made the power surge through my body.
THUD—
I planted a light kick into the belly of one cowering against the wall. Its entrails splattered against the stone like a banana touched by the hand of modern art.
If I could peel this wall off and take it back to my old world, I’d surely become the greatest artist of the century.
I swung my shield at the remaining two. With the sound of snapping twigs, their narrow shoulders were crushed and twisted.
"Is that all of them?"
The physical capabilities of an Alpha were truly remarkable. Even after moving this fast, my muscles weren't fatigued. Since I wasn't even winded, I felt like I could keep going for a long time.
"Yoo Eon! Are you okay?!"
"Lis, Isolde. Come in. I've cleared this area."
"You... handled all of this alone...?"
Lis and Isolde looked at the scattered goblin corpses with expressions of horror. Yoo Eon, splattered with blood, looked more than a little eerie.
His left eye, glowing alone in the darkness, quickly constricted its pupil as Isolde brought the lantern closer.
"Are you really okay?"
"Yes. Did anything come from behind?"
Lis shook her head. So, nothing. Since we had passed a fork in the road, goblins could have come from the rear. I needed to stay alert...
"Something’s coming. Something big."
"Yes. I felt it too."
Isolde and I sensed it simultaneously. One set of footsteps far heavier than a goblin's, followed by the light, rapid patter of many ordinary goblins.
And...
"Ugh..."
A human groan.
"It’s a... Goblin Champion..."
"So you're... the champion..."
It held a long iron two-handed sword in its right hand, while its left hand gripped the leg of a long-haired woman, dragging her along the floor.
"Can you reason with goblins?"
"Do you think you can...?"
"Then there's no room for negotiation."
The number of ordinary goblins following it seemed to exceed forty. They must have all been in the left tunnel.
These bastards are all dead.
It’s not as big as I thought.
The Champion was barely over two meters tall. It wasn't like an Orc, which stood at 2.5 meters by default.
The woman was alive. But why drag her here? Did goblins have enough intelligence to understand the concept of a hostage?
An elite variant might. Or was it using her as a shield? If so, it was being far too careless with how it dragged her.
Or was it a negotiation? I'll give you the hostage, so leave?
Or...
"Kraraak!!"
As the Champion swung its thick arm, the woman gripped in its hand rolled across the ground and scraped against the wall. She let out a pained groan, clutching a broken arm.
"That... that monster...!"
Ah.
I understood the moment I saw Lis's furious face.
"That’s a provocation."
Fine. A moderate amount of anger is actually quite beneficial in combat. The only problem was that I was already pissed off just from looking at their disgusting faces.
The bastard's provocation pushed my rage meter over the limit.
Should I cut off the left arm holding the woman? That would leave me open to an attack from the sword in its right hand.
Should I cut the right arm first to prevent the attack? I was worried about the woman in its left hand. If the creature lost an arm and started thrashing, it might kill her.
Then there was only one answer.
"Ssshh...!"
BOOM!!!
A massive roar shook the cave walls, spreading like an explosion. Since it was deep into the night and my body was overflowing with power, the propulsion I gained from a full-strength stomp was beyond words.
"DIE—!!!!"
Excalibur traced a silver crescent moon, tearing through the Champion's scalp, shattering its skull, severing the cervical vertebrae, and splitting the spine.
The creature, instantly undergoing asexual reproduction into 'Gob/lin' and 'Cham/pion,' sprayed thick, dark red blood from its center.
Splash—
Its body fell into the pool of blood, split perfectly in half. Yellow fat and bright red organs spilled out from the bisected torso. The surrounding ordinary goblins stood frozen, as if turned to stone.
"You should be sleeping at night. You sons of... no, you damn goblins."
With a sword in each hand, I had no blind spots.
I would perform the ultimate swordsmanship that no one could rival. The reason was simple, and the logic was straightforward: with two swords, I could cut twice as much.
In other words, it meant I was the strongest. I would prove the validity of my logic right here.
"I am invincible."
Come at me, you pieces of shit.