The goblin jerked violently, but I held on tight. There was no way I was letting this irritating little creep of a creature escape. My sword ca down in a lightning-fast arc, slicing it open from the chest downward. The goblin let out a shrill screech that cut off almost instantly, but it was enough to alert the others.
I felt their attention snap toward and the air shift and sharpened. They ignored my teammates completely and started to co towards .
There were five goblins left.
I smirked.
I pounced on the closest one, my body blurring forward. My sword flashed, and the goblin didn’t even have ti to process what was happening before its head left its shoulders.
"Now then," I muttered, eyes flicking toward the rest of them. I ignored all the pain that I was feeling and relished the joy of killing the pests. "Why don’t I take care of all of you too?...Wait. So this is how I get the green coins."
The goblin’s corpse lted rapidly, dissolving into viscous green goo. A single green coin remained at its center. I picked it up. It felt ordinary, except for the color.
The other goblins shifted uneasily.
They were C-rank Iron monsters. The only reason they’d been able to threaten us was because of the darkness that stole our senses.
Now they’re facing that could ’see’ then. The table had turned so fast. I leapt at the next goblin, my sword rising and falling without rcy. The remaining goblins panicked and ran, scrambling toward the edge of the village.
But I was ready.
"Dance of the Bones."
Three needle-shaped bones ignited with green fire as they shot out from my ring. They slamd into the goblins’ backs, and the paralyzing enchantnts activated instantly. The goblins stiffened mid-step and collapsed.
I dragged them back toward .
"You’re paralyzed," I said calmly. My voice matched the coldness of my voice. "But you can still feel pain. I think it’s only fair you feel what I felt while you hunted in the dark."
I was quick and efficient. I severed their limbs one after another, then left them writhing as I returned to my teammates, guiding them back together and explaining what had happened.
Afterward, I went back and finished the goblins off, collecting the green coins their dissolving bodies left behind.
I wasn’t entirely satisfied, but it would do.
☆☆▪︎▪︎☆☆
"What do we do now?" Litha asked. Relief was clear in her voice, though she still looked shaken. Those little creepers had clearly gotten under her skin as well.
"Can’t we just stay under the shield?" Tim asked, glancing around through the dim, warped light.
We were holding hands again, standing in a tight circle.
"We can," Temur said, "but the darkness is interfering with our magic. Litha’s shield broke when it shouldn’t have. Right now, we can only rely on you."
"That’s right," I said, nodding. "I can sense my surroundings now. Any monster that tries to use the darkness will have to face . And we already have four green coins."
"We don’t know if that’s enough," Cele said. "There are more than four of us."
"The spirit said to gather green coins," Litha replied. "Not how many we need."
"Then we go outside and kill as many as we can," I said. I could feel the itch in my hands already. "There have to be plenty of goblins out there and not enough Awakeners hunting them."
No one argued.
They followed outside in single file, each person gripping the one ahead. They didn’t really have a choice. I was the only one who could protect them.
Outside was pure chaos.
Goblins sward blind Awakeners. Screams echoed everywhere as flesh tore and bones cracked. Many of the Awakeners were already covered in shallow cuts, bleeding and panicking as they were herded and toyed with.
The goblins were enjoying it, laughing, darting in and out, slicing with small knives. The wounds piled up too quickly for potions to matter.
This wasn’t a trial anymore, it was now a hunt.
Awakeners were the prey. Goblins were the hunters.
"I’ll leave you here," I said coldly. "Litha, put a shield around yourselves. I won’t go far."
Once the shield ford, I turned and walked deeper into the village.
"How does it feel," I murmured, "for the hunter to beco the hunted?"
I, and then soon found out.
My sword sang as it cut through the air. Goblins fell one after another, their bodies lting into green puddles as coins clinked onto the ground.
I didn’t stop. My blade lashed out like an iron whip, flesh tearing like paper.
Too late for them, the goblins realized I could see them.
"ke ke ke ke ke!"
"Ke ke ke ke ke!"
"Ke ke ke ke?!"
"Ke ke ke ke ke ke!!"
They surrounded , knives flashing like silver rain from their hand.
Strength in numbers?
I blinked, my face steadily calm.
"I’m not great with a sword," I said softly. "Then again, I’m a Necromancer."
I raised my hand. And summoned hundreds of bone needles that i had prepared, so infused with fire, others with paralysis, and a few carrying the freezing power I’d taken from ice orcs.
I grinned.
"Dance of the Bones."
The needles ignited around like green fireflies.
With a gesture, they exploded outward at bullet speed. The air ripped and whined as the shockwave tore through the street. The needles punched through goblins with brutal precision.
Bodies collapsed like soaked rags.
"I don’t even need to activate the spells inside the bones," I muted. "I really should use this more."
When the ground beneath had turned into a shimring green slurry, I collected the coins.
Then I headed back.
My team was already surrounded again.
This ti, I activated the spells deliberately, just to hear the goblins scream as they burned or froze to death.
The rest, I finished with my sword.
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