I looked at the place the goblin stood, the ground blackened from the fire. It’s a waste about the staff but if it couldn’t even stand an attack of this level while being used for fire magic it would be useless sooner than later.

“Couldn’t you just have incinerated him at the beginning?” Alice pulled her sword out of the earth and same nearer, the light of the remaining flames reflecting in the cold steel.

“There is much that one can learn while observing their opponents.” I created a small circle, making a tiny flame snake appear.

“I will just split them apart before they have a chance to resists.” She swung her sword, creating a gust of wind as the pieces of her last kill were flicked away.

“It’s not like it will always end in an easy fight. And then you will be thankful for every skill you’ve learned.”

“But you wouldn’t leave us alone then.” She smiled at me. “I know Sarah and I can count on you to safe us if something happens.”

“Haaaa,” this girl… Well, it’s not like she isn’t right. I appreciated their company after years of loneliness. It felt good to challenge the dangers with people I could trust. And I wouldn’t lose someone again.

 

---

 

After we dealt with the settlement the goblins started to retreat. Seems like their loss back then was enough of a warning. We strode around the forest for weeks, hunting the monsters that came in the absence of goblins. It took a week till Alice reached level 50, turning from a warrior into a swordsman.

She turned gleeful, swinging her sword left and right while testing her new skill, destroying the surroundings in the process. On our way we came across a pond filled with crocodile-like monsters, led by an albino one. Though it was as big as a van and at least thrice as long she stepped forward, asking us to let her take it on.

She rushed forward, straight towards it while smashing the little ones away, leaving them bleeding and unmoving outside the pond. Noticing the demise of the little ones the albino one shot forward, twisting its head ninety degrees while snapping its mouth open. But opposed to the monster Alice just shouted out.

“Cleaving wind!”

The next thing we saw was her sword descending, clashing into the ground and causing fountains of water to rise beside her, blocking our view. But before the water even fell down the crocodile rushed outwards, cleanly split into half, only carried by its last momentum

“Iyaaa, gross!”

Shaaa, the water fell down, leaving behind a drenched woman, covered in blood and entrails, desperately trying to get it of her. Sarah had a sympathetic view on her face as they were both still quite attentive to their hygiene even though they spent over a month in the dungeon. I in contrast only had an exasperated face. What else were you expecting in that situation?

 

A few days later Sarah also reached level 50 changing into a sharpshooter. While increasing her accuracy drastically it also let her disappear within her surroundings. If one had enough perception it would be easy to find her if nearby but if attacked from afar one would more likely end with an arrow piercing through their head than finding her before.

As she tested her new powers she disappeared into the foliage, nearly making me lose her if I hadn’t focused on her. Arrows whistled through the air, piercing into the brains or hearts of gigantic insects, easily smashing through their carapace. They searched for their attacker, finding only Alice and me standing in the distance, at which they started to stampede towards us.

They came nearer fast, their legs clicking against the ground while the sound of one arrow after the other was heard. Finally, shortly before they reached us the one in front stopped, crashing into the ground as it collapsed. It was just like the others, dying through her bow as she picked them off one after another starting from the last.

“Why not start with the one in front?” Alice questioned her as she would have just cleaved through them one after another.

“While the would be slowed down by the bodies of the others they would also spread out, making it harder for me to hit them if they run behind something.” Sarah swung herself from a tree, landing next to us. “Especially if I have such splendid bait standing around doing nothing.” She struck out her tongue, running away before Alice chased after her.

“Wait you little…!”

 

One night our sleep was disturbed as gunshots rang out, followed by an explosion. So, they are finally here.

“Gunshots?” Alice quickly rose up as the familiar sound resounded in an unfamiliar world.

Sarah already climbed up the next tree, looking into the distance to see the source of the noise. “Five soldiers. They are fighting against these crocs, but it doesn’t seem like they are winning as they are slowly retreating.” Another explosion resounded. “All while trying to kill them with grenades.”

“We have to save them!” Alice grabbed her sword, nearly running off before I stopped her in her way. “What are you…?”

“How many are there?” She looked at me puzzled before Sarah answered me.

“Three groups of goblins, maybe around five hundred each. Along with a few groups of beasts.” She spoke in a sad tone, estimating how this would end soon.

“We already killed hundreds of them,” Alice spoke while swinging her sword, “these will just end like the ones before them.”

“They are different. They should be a war group, searching for their enemies. And there is only one thing that posed a problem to them in the past weeks.”

“Still…”

“I’m not saying we can’t save them; we just can’t charge in without a plan.” I started to grin, thinking about the experience we would get from them.

 

---

 

“Last magazine!” My friend next to me shouted out. “Changing to single-shot.”

“As if that would change anything, hahahaha!” I began to laugh, standing next to the corpse of my comrade as I also switched to my last magazine.

“Stop laughing and keep fighting, idiot.” Our superior screamed at us before aiming his gun at another of these ugly green skins. I emptied my last magazine inside the body of one of their leaders. I looked around, switching to my pistol before shooting at a goblin that sneaked upon James.

“Thanks Paul.”

“Sure thing.”

Before I could aim at the next one a scream resounded out next to us. “Commander!” I shot the goblin that hacked at him while James ran towards him. Kneeling next to him.

“Shot something and level up!” James shouted as I stepped next to them, covering their backs.

He coughed, spitting blood out, before pushing a smile on his face. “I just did before, there’s no way it will happen in time.” I turned around to see his wound, blood gushing out of a cut that spread over his entire chest. He’s right.

“Do me a favor, run.” He pushed his hand inside his jacket, pulling a grenade outside. “My last one, use it to open the way.” He pressed the grenade in James hand and pushed himself upwards, staggering into the direction of the goblins. One hand grabbed his knife while the other reached towards his belt, closing around the shaft of his pistol.

I grabbed James, pulling him in the other direction before he decides to have a last stand together with him. That bastard is to loyal for his own good.

But it didn’t change anything as we were surrounded once more only a few minutes afterwards. Back to back we stood, long having switched to our knives when the bullets ran out. I stabbed another goblin, contributing to the corpses on the ground but there were only more of them behind them.

“I think it’s time to use this.” My friend said as he threw the grenade to me.

“I don’t that it’ll make a difference.”

“Only in the corpse-count.”

“Savage.” My finger wandered to the pin, ready to pull it out as a warning shot out.

“Get down!”

While we didn’t know who it was as long as they spoke our language it had to be an ally. We threw ourselves towards the ground, just in time before a gust of wind passed over us. Screams rang out from the goblin around us. I stood up only to see them lying around us, all having been split apart.

A branch cracked beside us, making us shot around, ready to intercept if necessary. But what stood there made both of us stop in stupor. A woman covered in blood, her body and clothes riddled with small cuts. Still nothing one wouldn’t see in the army. The disturbing thing was her easily carrying a sword bigger than herself in one hand.

She bit her lip before she started to speak. “Only two…”

 

---

 

I stood surrounded by fire, sweat running down my temple. “How much longer?”

“A few hundred feet.” Sarah’s voice resounded above me. “Keep going.”

“Haaaa.” I exhaled sharply, she says it like it’s easy. I poured even more mana into the fire, emptying half of my reserves in this lone spell.

Deeper understanding my ass!

“Far enough!”

Finally! The circle beneath me lit up, its light suppressing the darkness of the stormy night. “[Burnflame; Modify: World of Fire].” With my words the surroundings went silent for a moment, as crackling of fire suppressed anything else.