The Face of the Avenger

While recovering my stamina, I begin to think. If I’m considering risk avoidance, the best move would be to retreat for now.

My rational mind is telling me to do just that. But my emotions don’t agree. I’ve been chased relentlessly like prey.

I don’t like it. I don’t like the idea of running away without being able to take proper revenge.

And this is a chance. The equipment of eight adventurers… this could be a fortune. Goblins and adventurers are killing each other. If I play my cards right, I can intervene and pick up the spoils.

However, the risks are high. The goblins will target me because I’m human, and the adventurers are also trying to kill me.

In the worst case, I could be attacked by both sides.

Should I run, or should I try to take advantage of the situation? Adventurers who are blinded by greed don’t tend to live long. But adventurers who hesitate at crucial moments don’t live long either.

If even one of the adventurers survives, they’ll spread information about me. How I excel in combat in the forest, my ability to sense and hide my presence, and my skills with throwing shuriken.

These are all techniques that are most effective when the opponent is caught off guard. If they take countermeasures, my chances of survival will drop drastically.

I want to wipe out all the adventurers. But if too many goblins survive, I’ll be killed by them.

What should I do? I clutch my head in frustration.

Damn it! A muscle-headed fool’s thinking is like resting. For now, I’ll recover my stamina and wait for an opportunity. I can adjust my approach based on how things unfold.

Maintain high flexibility and adapt as needed.

After much internal debate, I reach the conclusion that I’ll observe the situation and decide later. As I recover my stamina, I move carefully through the forest, timing my intervention.

“Why is there a goblin settlement here?”

“I don’t know! Stop complaining and move!”

“Dammit! You think you can mess with me, a goblin?”

Though they’re numerous, they’re just goblins after all. They don’t have the strength to take on a level 15 adventurer.

There are only six adventurers left. They’ve expended energy from chasing me, and they’ve been injured by shuriken and rocks, but nothing that would leave them unable to fight.

The adventurers managed to take out the goblins they were fighting before the hobgoblins arrived. They let their guard down for just a breath, but in an instant, they regrouped and formed a formation to deal with the hobgoblins.

They’re seasoned adventurers from Rock Cliff. They’re quick to switch gears and stay in top form even if they’re not at their best health.

If the hobgoblins had charged in during the chaotic battle with the goblins, the goblins might’ve had a chance.

If it had turned into complete mayhem, the hobgoblins might’ve been able to win. But now, things seem tough for them. I keep observing the situation.

By the time the hobgoblins arrived, the goblins they were fighting had already been killed.

The hobgoblins must have rushed to the battlefield, but it was already too late. The village had been raided, and their comrades were lying dead.

The hobgoblin, after casting a glance at the bodies of his fallen kin, quietly unsheathed his bastard sword. My attention was drawn to his expression.

Though his face was alien, it was clear that it was filled with a mix of anger and sorrow. Yes, he wore the face of a vengeful being.

“GRAAAAAAAGH!”

It was a scream, or a roar, filled with grief and rage. The goblins’ intelligence was high enough to form settlements and live in groups.

It was no surprise that, like humans, they would feel anger and sorrow at the death of their kin.

The last hobgoblin I met had treated his goblin subordinates like garbage, killing them carelessly when he felt like it.

I’d assumed monsters were all like that, but perhaps there are individual differences.

The hobgoblin, his kin slain, was shaking with rage. Hobgoblins may not be the same as humans, but anger brings great benefits in battle.

The downside is the loss of composure, which can be a huge disadvantage. But at the same time, there are also significant advantages.

A massive adrenaline rush dulls pain and promotes blood clotting. It releases the body’s natural limits. And most importantly, it removes the fear of death.

The outcome of the battle was becoming uncertain. The more evenly matched the fight became, the more it worked in my favor. Go, hobgoblins!

The hobgoblins let out a war cry and charged toward the adventurers. The adventurers were ready for them.

Hobgoblins are tough opponents, but for level 15 adventurers, even though it’s risky, one can be defeated solo. With two adventurers, the fight is relatively safe, and with three, it’s considered an easy victory.

It seemed like the adventurers’ strategy was to have three of them hold off the hobgoblin, while the others took care of the regular goblins.

Three level 15 adventurers versus nine goblins. No matter how hard the hobgoblin fights, the goblins can’t win.

At that moment, confusion spread among the adventurers. There was a separate goblin squad behind them, trying to surround the adventurers.

I had sensed it with my presence detection, but the adventurers, distracted by the hobgoblin, were slow to react and started to panic.

“Goblins are surrounding us!? No, it’s not just any goblins, there are higher-tier goblins!”

“There’s a warrior and a mage!”

“A mage!? That’s a rare sight! And a high-level one at that!”

“Are you kidding me? Hobgoblins and now a warrior and mage… What kind of settlement is this?”

A goblin mage!? This world has magic, but until now, I had never seen any spells in action. Finally, I was about to see magic in action!

Despite the tense situation, I couldn’t help but feel excited.

But these goblins… they’re impressive. I’ve fought goblins many times, but I’ve never encountered such a large group. I’ve always had the impression that goblins, no matter how resilient they were, were mostly dumb and couldn’t execute complex strategies.

But these goblins were different.

The hobgoblin drew the adventurers’ attention, and in the meantime, the goblin warrior and goblin mage led a separate squad to attack from behind.

The two adventurers who were part of the rear guard, using bows as their main weapon, were the first to get hit by the surprise attack. One of them quickly switched to a short sword as a secondary weapon to defend.

If the adventurers were at their best, they might have been able to deal with the situation. But they had already used up a lot of their energy chasing me, and they were wounded from my earlier harassment.

Caught off guard by the surprise attack, the adventurers seemed like they might be done for. But that didn’t happen.

The leader, who appeared to be the most experienced, shouted at the others.

The adventurers regained their composure, and the leader quickly gave orders. Thanks to his guidance, they managed to stabilize their shaky position.

It was an intense battle. I was excited to watch! Although I was on high alert with my presence detection, I was still observing the battle between the adventurers and goblins with the feeling of watching a form of entertainment.

The adventurers, now re-organized, reduced the number of people facing the hobgoblin to two, while one person went to help the rear guard.

One of the rear guards, who had been attacked from behind, fought off the goblin warrior with a short sword, which he wasn’t used to. Another adventurer kept the goblin mage at bay with his bow.

A bow! Damn it!! Stop interfering with the magic! I cursed the adventurer in my mind, like an old man heckling a baseball player while holding a beer.

The adventurer who had been facing the hobgoblin and was now in the rear guard wasn’t able to handle the regular goblins and was attacked by one.

The adventurer with the bow threw away his weapon and drew his secondary short sword, killing the goblin with a swift strike.

While the adventurer who had gone to assist the rear guard and the one who discarded his bow dealt with the regular goblins, the freed goblin mage prepared to cast a spell.

A fireball, about the size of a softball, sped toward the adventurer who had been fighting the goblin warrior.

Was that a Fireball spell?

The adventurer, who had been fending off the goblin warrior with his unfamiliar short sword, was too focused on the close combat to keep an eye out for the approaching fireball.

It was too late for him to notice the fireball coming straight at him.

Realizing he couldn’t dodge in time, he tried to block with his left arm bracer. A small pop sounded, followed by a small explosion.

The explosion singed the adventurer’s arm.

Huh? That was weaker than I expected. Could it be because it’s goblin magic? Well, even if it’s weak, the damage is still significant.

The adventurer’s left arm must have suffered a serious burn. In this world, adventurers have skills, so as long as they’re still capable of moving, they can keep fighting. But pain dulls concentration, and that’s something no skill can help with.

Adventurers are probably somewhat resistant to pain. They’re used to being slashed or punched, but they’re not accustomed to the pain of burns.

It’s not like regular pain; it’s the distinctive, agonizing pain of a burn.

The adventurer, who had been holding his own with the short sword, now struggled to move properly due to the pain from the burn.

The adventurer, who had been able to dodge the goblin warrior’s strikes, now couldn’t avoid the sword in time, and the goblin warrior’s blade found its mark on the adventurer’s neck.

The adventurer collapsed, blood pouring from the wound as he fell to the ground.

Now, there were only five adventurers left. However, the adventurers had managed to take out a significant number of the goblins. The separate squad of goblins had already been wiped out.

The adventurer who had moved from the front to assist the rear guard fought against the goblin warrior. The archer picked up his bow and aimed for the goblin mage.

Meanwhile, the two adventurers in the front lines did their best to dodge the hobgoblin’s fierce attacks while buying time, with the adventurer leader steadily thinning the number of regular goblins.

A deadlock. Or perhaps the adventurers were slightly favored? Just as I was thinking that, the situation took a dramatic turn.

The remaining goblins, now fewer in number, suddenly charged at the adventurer leader.

The leader was skilled in positioning, moving in a way that prevented him from being surrounded by multiple enemies, restricting the range of their attacks.

He seemed to think that even if the goblins rushed at him all at once, he could handle them. But the goblins had a different target in mind.

The first goblin was slashed and killed by the leader, but the goblins didn’t stop their charge.

Ignoring the leader, they turned and charged straight toward the adventurers fighting the hobgoblin.

Panicking, the leader quickly slashed down the goblins attacking from behind.

Still, two of the goblins got through, breaking past him. Those that broke through charged toward different adventurers.

The adventurers fighting the hobgoblin were a little flustered, but after all, they were just goblins. They could handle them while dodging the hobgoblin’s attacks. Or so they thought.

Just as they tried to slay the goblins that had broken through and refocus on the hobgoblin, something unexpected happened.

The goblins who had been slashed but were still alive clung to the legs of the adventurers, desperately hanging on. The adventurer clicked his tongue and drove his sword through the goblin clinging to his leg.

As he lifted his gaze, the hobgoblin, raising its sword, appeared before him.

“Ah!”

The adventurer let out a surprised cry just before his head was cleaved off. The goblin, which had been clinging to his leg, watched the scene with satisfaction before finally dying.

Another adventurer, seeing the hobgoblin decapitate his comrade, rushed forward and slashed at the hobgoblin’s back.

The blow must have felt good to the adventurer; he had struck the hobgoblin deep. His comrade had died, but thanks to that, the hobgoblin was left wide open.

Victory seemed within reach for the adventurer’s team.

However, the hobgoblin, seemingly unaffected by the wound on its back, turned around and swung its sword with renewed force.

“What?!”

The adventurer’s delayed scream echoed as the hobgoblin’s blade cleaved through his arm.

“Ahh! My arm… my arm!”

The adventurer, clutching his wounded arm, rolled on the ground in agony.

Ignoring the fallen adventurer, the hobgoblin raised its sword and focused on the adventurer leader.

All the regular goblins had been wiped out. The goblin forces now consisted of a warrior, a mage, and the hobgoblin. The adventurers’ side had three survivors.

Three against three. The battle was now approaching its final stage.