Tutorial #8: Cornered
Stay calm. “Kieeeek!”
I had been locked in a prolonged chase with them. Thanks to my superior physique, I had a clear advantage over the goblins when it came to running. Even after just a few strides, the distance between us widened considerably. But these were scouts—professional hunters who knew how to track fleeing prey and butcher them. The moment I slowed even slightly, they closed the gap again. Run, rest when the distance grew, run again when they drew near. I kept that rhythm for about thirty minutes.
“Krrk! Krrk!”
Those damn goblins… My stamina had reached its limit. Every movement sent my entire body screaming in protest. I no longer had the strength to keep running. Had they been waiting for this exact moment? Tracking me until I collapsed from exhaustion, then slitting my throat and returning home…
No. I couldn’t die here like this. Not after everything I had endured to reach this point.
The brief rest was shattered by the goblins’ shouts. There was nowhere left to run. I drew my battered saw blade. [Rusty Corpse Saw (4%)]
All I had left was this worn-out saw and a single pair of forceps. Facing me were seven goblins in total.
[Bravery (Morale)] + Defeated enemies + Tracked enemies + Victorious in combat
Their morale was at its peak. They weren’t the type to flee just because a few of their own had fallen. My only remaining hope was that the Orc Warrior hadn’t joined the pursuit. There was no longer any choice. Whether I liked it or not, I had to fight the goblins—and win. Survive.
“Come on, you bastards!”
“Kiaaaah!”
Gripping the saw with both hands, I glared at the goblins. They were charging down the slope at terrifying speed. They would crash into me, and I would have to meet them head-on. Only one of them—the one at the rear—carried a proper weapon: a crude iron pike. The rest wielded light clubs or makeshift daggers. My palms were slick with sweat on the handle. I felt like I was going insane. No allies to help me. No tricks left to play. In this most desperate moment, what remained wasn’t strength or skill, but a sliver of luck.
Damn it. Whatever happens, happens.
“Uwaaaah!”
With no intention of fleeing, I pressed my back against a thick tree trunk and let out a scream that was half battle cry. Combat was about momentum. If I couldn’t seize the initiative from the start, this fight would turn ugly fast.
The goblins showed no sign of faltering at my roar. They began to encircle me, slowly tightening the noose. There were seven of them, but at most three could attack at once. If luck held, I might survive. If not, I would die—just like the others who had gone before me.
It didn’t matter who struck first. One goblin let out a shriek and swung its club as it rushed in. First strike wins. That had always been the rule. If these goblins had been clever, they would have used the pike to probe and provoke me first—since my only counter to it would have been throwing rocks. But they foolishly discarded their advantage. Was it overconfidence in their numbers? Or blind greed for glory? Either way, it didn’t matter. What mattered was that the fight now favored me.
My advantage: the saw was a two-handed weapon. When I thrust it forward, one goblin’s belly split open cleanly. The blade was long enough to require a back sheath—considered a large weapon by human standards. To goblins, who were barely half a human’s size, it must have looked monstrous. The goblin’s stomach burst like a rotten onion, spraying blood and entrails in every direction. An ugly death. One down.
“Huuuuk.”
While the saw was extended, two more goblins slipped in from the sides. The weapon was powerful but heavy. By the time I tried to pull it back for defense, it was already too late. A club slammed straight into my abdomen.
“Kuh!”
No choice. I abandoned recovering the saw and instead swung my arm to block. Even with the armor, the stomach was a vital spot. A direct hit would end everything. “You bastards!”
Fortunately, blocking with my arm minimized the damage. It stung, but I could endure it. In the middle of a fight, this wasn’t even a serious wound. I smashed the goblin’s face left and right with my fists, then drove a punch into its gut. The creature dropped its club and collapsed, teeth scattering across the ground. I kicked the second goblin away and retrieved the saw.
In that precarious instant, two more goblins charged from the front. Reckless, but manageable. I swung the saw at their necks—the same motion I had repeated hundreds of times since becoming a Necromancer. Almost reflexively, the strike landed. A heavy sensation traveled up my arm. The goblin’s head separated from its body. Whoosh! Flesh tore, and the head flew through the air. Hot blood gushed like a fountain from the horrific wound.
“Die! Die!”
For a split second, one of the charging goblins locked eyes with me and froze. As I had said earlier—combat was about momentum. The first to falter died. That one was afraid of me. So it had to die. I gripped the saw with both hands, blade pointed downward, and drove it into the goblin’s chest with all my weight. The saw sank deep with terrifying ease. It was a tool designed to rip flesh and sever bone. A frail body could never withstand steel forged into a weapon.
“Graaaah!”
I must have put too much force into it. I felt the tip bite into the dirt—the blade had punched through the chest and embedded itself in the ground. Damn it. I tried to yank it free, but it was caught on ribs or spine. The saw was stuck fast to the goblin’s corpse.
“Krrk!”
In that opening, the goblin I had kicked earlier regained its senses and rushed me.
“Ugh.”
It would take real effort to pull the saw loose. I abandoned it and thrust out my right arm to stop the goblin. To my surprise, the creature charged without even raising its club. Its hands were empty. It latched onto my right arm and sank its teeth into my forearm, as if trying to hinder my movements…
Thud!
I slammed the goblin to the ground and drew the forceps with my left hand. The blood-stained iron tool. I reversed my grip like a dagger and drove it straight into the goblin’s eye.
“Kiaaaak!”
The forceps were sharp enough to pierce like an awl when closed, yet strong enough to extract fingernails when opened. I twisted the tool half a turn inside the socket. With a sickening crunch of tearing muscle, the eyeball came loose. I spread the forceps and forcibly ripped the eye out. Pop! Severed nerves and tendons dangled from the ruined orb. The forceps were too sharp to preserve its shape, but the shock alone was enough. The goblin forgot about biting me and clutched at its face, rolling on the ground.
“Kiaaaak! Kiaaaah!”
Meanwhile, I twisted and wrenched the saw free from the corpse. Thick blood poured out in heavy spurts. I killed goblin after goblin. I fought until my arms went numb and my breath came in ragged gasps. Until no more goblins remained to attack me.
How long had I been fighting?
“Kiiiiiik!”
The remaining goblins let out strange screams and began to flee. Once one ran, fear spread like a plague. The rest scattered, shrieking. Were they going to fetch the Orc Warrior?
[Routing! (Morale)]
It might not seem like much, but a Necromancer’s attacks eroded enemy morale. The sight of horribly mutilated corpses, dying comrades, and a blood-soaked madman swinging a saw must have broken their will.
“Hah… hah…”
Part of me wanted to chase them down and finish them all, but my body had reached its limit. I wanted nothing more than to collapse and sleep, yet I couldn’t. I had won the battle. But now I was the one who had to run. I had bought enough time to escape before they returned with the Orc Warrior.
“Damn… bastards…”
Clatter. The saw trembled unsteadily. When I tested the blade, it simply fell out of the handle. Damn it. It had lasted longer than expected. I discarded the broken saw and kept moving downward, away from goblin territory. I paused only to rinse my mouth at a stream. Without food or rest, I pressed on until I finally reached the edge of the valley. No goblin pursuers. I collapsed beside a well-traveled path and stretched out flat. Breathing was difficult. Every ounce of strength had left my body. I closed my eyes and tried to steady my breathing.
In the battlefield drenched with blood and flesh, the final moments of Daro, Jian, and Somi flashed before me like paintings. There had been nothing I could do. Nothing…
“Huuu…”
Hot tears streamed down my cheeks. My companions were dead, but I had survived. In the end, I was the one who lived.