The Way of the Sword (4)
Path of the Sword (4)
I stared intently at the Hobgoblin blocking my path.
Its aura was distinctly different from the ordinary goblins who had been fleeing for their lives with their tails between their legs.
As expected of a superior subspecies.
Its dignified attitude of protecting its kin actually looked quite impressive.
"...I feel like I've become the villain here."
It was the goblins themselves who had brought me here.
This scene of slaughter was entirely the doing of these monsters driven by lust.
They must have enjoyed themselves, biting and sucking on breasts and ejaculating their seed into cunts. Not knowing that the price to pay would be death.
The goblins sharing the same den simply had to bear collective responsibility together.
That Hobgoblin, who appeared to be the group's leader, couldn't escape responsibility either.
"Grrrr...!"
Even while facing the Hobgoblin, I didn't feel the slightest bit of tension.
Just a few months ago, I would have been risking my life in a decisive battle.
I could definitely feel that I had grown stronger.
Now it was time to face off against it and determine who was superior.
"Grrr!"
Gripping Agony's Ecstasy in reverse, I charged at it like lightning.
The Hobgoblin similarly kicked off the ground and rushed toward me.
I could see its stone axe flying toward my neck.
A slow and obvious attack.
I immediately deployed my footwork to gracefully evade it and swung Agony's Ecstasy.
"Kee, keeeit...!"
The dagger swept past its waist.
As its skin tore like paper, fresh blood gushed out and the creature staggered in excruciating pain.
"Kieet, kiheek...!"
It was merely a shallow cut.
But the Hobgoblin acted as if a hole had been punched through its stomach, completely unable to regain its composure.
This was the power of Agony, the demon of torment and master of abuse.
The me from the past who struggled desperately in bare-handed combat no longer existed.
"Don't worry. I'll make it quick."
I closed in on it and repeatedly swung my dagger.
Fresh wounds carved into its entire body like crimson tattoos, and the Hobgoblin grew increasingly frenzied with pain.
"Keeek! Kihayaak!"
It thrashed about wildly, throwing punches and kicks in all directions.
The power behind them was quite fierce, but each movement was too telegraphed.
Evading as naturally as flowing water, I delivered the finishing blow to the Hobgoblin.
Agony's Ecstasy pierced through under its jaw in an instant.
With that fierce strike that pierced both its skin and tongue simultaneously, the Hobgoblin uttered its death rattle.
"Kiek...! Keheeeek..."
It no longer had the energy to even struggle.
With Agony's Ecstasy still embedded in its neck, the Hobgoblin collapsed to the ground as if crumbling.
An overwhelmingly easy victory.
The difficulty was truly on a different dimension compared to when I faced the Hobgoblin protecting Maria in the past.
I had definitely become stronger.
Even if I were to fight a dire wolf again, it wouldn't be as difficult now.
Feeling the satisfaction of growth, I proceeded further into the cave.
With the Hobgoblin fallen, there was nothing left to stop me.
"Kee, kireek! Kireerek!"
I slaughtered every goblin I saw trying to flee.
No matter how hard they tried to escape in various directions, it was impossible for them to get away from me.
After nearly wiping out all the goblins in the cave, I reached the final remaining area.
Sensing the presence inside, I entered a small den.
"Kee... kireek!"
A small group of goblins hiding in the corner until the very end.
They were none other than the females.
They had somewhat milder appearances compared to male goblins, with modest breasts visible.
Surprisingly, they had pale pink nipples without any discoloration.
Even though the males must have sucked on them relentlessly, they maintained such pretty colors. I guess this is the mystery of genetics.
"Kireek..."
Since it was my first time seeing female goblins, I found them fascinating in many ways.
Of course, just because they were interesting didn't mean I intended to spare them.
Judging morality, ethics, good and evil between humans and monsters is meaningless.
We fight and fight again because we cannot coexist.
The swung Agony's Ecstasy took the lives of the five females.
With this, I had successfully exterminated another goblin cave.
- Pain (6,890pt)
The results were certain. I had earned over 6,000 points in just a few hours.
An excellent return compared to just sucking some breasts and fucking a few times.
With this level of efficiency, I should consider coming back again in a few months.
*Stats
Strength 50 Stamina 10 Speed 47
Senses 50 Intelligence 40 Magic 40
From 40 onward, it required a whopping 400 points to raise each stat by one.
So after raising Strength from 40 to 50 and Speed from 40 to 47, my points were immediately depleted.
I briefly enjoyed the pleasant sensation of my joints vibrating and muscles reorganizing.
When the physical changes ended, I clenched and unclenched my fist, gauging my strength.
When I sparred with Richard last time, our strength was comparable and I had a slight advantage in speed.
With stats like these, I'm now far ahead of Richard.
Even if my swordsmanship is somewhat lacking, my physical specs alone should be enough to make up the difference.
Before returning to the city, I opened Mammon's report - my inventory - and took out my clothes and equipment.
It was time to return from being naked to having a mercenary-like appearance.
I also took out a sack and collected the goblins' ears.
No matter how much money I've been making lately, I couldn't just leave these behind.
Each ear is worth a full 20 grange.
The payment I received in Chevika's slums was 10 grange.
And after various deductions at the brothel, the money that actually ended up in my hands was only 5-6 grange.
My past was too harsh for me to lose my beginner's mindset already.
I diligently cut off ears and filled the sack until it was plump.
Next, I looked around to see if there were any useful spoils of war.
I wondered if there might be gems or something, but as expected, there were only a few silver and copper coins.
Having finished my business, it was time to return to the city.
After exiting the cave, I walked through the goblin forest for a while.
I moved with my senses heightened to get accustomed to presence detection, but strangely, the forest was eerily quiet.
Was it because I had annihilated one cave?
Though puzzled, I was about to dismiss it and continue walking when...
"Oh my, helloo~? We've finally met, haven't weee."
A unfamiliar voice suddenly reached my ears.
The moment I stared at the woman who appeared ahead, my eyes widened and I immediately drew my sword.
Vibrant orange hair and excessively large breasts.
Her curvaceous hourglass figure was clearly visible through her elegant robe.
That distinctive hair color and information about her bust size definitely remained in my memory.
The mage who had collaborated with bandit leader Archibald.
Also, the mastermind behind the subjugation force incident who had provided him with the fragment of corruption.
The description Jugeokteok had testified about perfectly matched this woman's appearance.
"I'm so happyyy. I really struggled to find youuu."
Her way of dragging out her words was extremely irritating.
But right now, I didn't have the luxury to care about such things.
"...Who are you to say you were looking for me? This is my first time seeing you."
I swallowed dryly and responded calmly.
Though she seemed to already know everything, there was no need to act like I knew her first.
"Aah. Don't pretend you don't knooow. You're Rene, aren't youuu? The female mercenary who sliced up my friend Archibald and all his underlings."
As expected, she seemed to have already figured everything out.
Denying it would be pointless.
I tightened my grip on the sword hilt and silently glared at her.
"Ahahat! Someone tried really hard to hide the information reeeally well. But eventually, everything comes out from somewhere, doesn't it?"
So she meticulously dug through Daygan's efforts and narrowed down the suspect to me.
A thorough and persistent woman.
I bit my lip and sank into thought.
What should I do?
Charge in without discussion and engage in combat? Or turn and flee without looking back?
To grasp something about her, I examined her carefully.
The first thing I noticed were her lips thickly coated with red lipstick.
Her somewhat languid eyes exuded a dangerous decadent charm.
She was probably in her early to mid-thirties, around Madam Rosalia's age.
If I had to say, she would fall into the category of a rare beauty.
Below her face, what stood out most were her enormous breasts.
On one side of her chest, a metal badge was conspicuously attached.
The badge had a familiar shape.
When I focused my vision, I could see it clearly even from a distance.
A tree pattern surrounded by vines and the word 'Sephirot' written beneath it.
...I've seen a badge like that somewhere before.
The crazy woman Maria who claimed to be the wife of the goblins.
For some reason, the badge she had was identical to that one.
"Hmm? Youuu. You know 'us', don't youuu? How do you knooow?"
"What are you talking about? I don't know."
I immediately denied it, but she laughed at me with a shrill voice.
"Ahahat! Stop playing innoocent. You know, it shows all over your faaace?"
Unnecessarily perceptive.
Prolonging the conversation further was meaningless.
This woman must have come seeking revenge for her comrade Archibald.
Since I didn't know when she might prepare her magic, it would be better for me to attack first.
I gripped my sword and settled into stance. Then I briefly focused my consciousness.
Equivalent Exchange of Wrath.
This demonic power I recently acquired had the effect of temporarily amplifying my stats.
- Equivalent Exchange: Wrath
- Amplify Speed stat temporarily using 150pt of Wrath
- Amplification coefficient: 1.5x
A hot sensation filled my entire body, including my legs.
A thrilling sense of elevation that made me feel like anything was possible now also dominated my body.
So this was the power of wrath.
After one breath, I explosively kicked off the ground.
My physical body shot forward, cutting through the wind.
Unconsciously, I closed the distance and thrust my sword toward the mage.