"It’s really close, isn’t it? It was pointless no matter how many times the goblins got defeated."

It’s exactly as Marcella said. The distance between the village and the woods was short, even on foot. On horse, it would be so quick that we wouldn’t even have time to eat.

"The nest is this close, yet nobody realized its presence until such a large horde was formed?"

We defeated many goblins on our way to here and Mireille's group was ambushed by over hundred of goblins. There were even more in the cave. The goblins assembled to form a large horde.

A goblin, who appeared to be a lookout, came out frequently from a bush to take a peek and was about to run away, but Lily shot it to death as if it was target practice. To Lily, who regularly hunted animals that move quickly such as wolves and deer, the ugly goblin that ran bow-legged was not even moving.

"That’s number nine!"

"Good going, when we get back, I’ll hug you." Lily stared at me angrily. Mireille tried to contain her laughing.

Lily's efforts really helped us successfully reach the inner part of cave.

"I thought the cave would be filled with goblins but that is unexpectedly not the case."

We found several of them who were trying to run away earlier, but it’s nothing like the hundreds of goblins that the village chief mentioned.

"Yes, it’s strangely quiet."

"That’s weird. There aren’t any birds or animals either…… it’s like this place is dead."

The cave was spacious and had many trees. Not as many as trees outside but there enough for something to hide on the trees and ambush us.

Brita had an uneasy look. Because I was taller than the others, a branch slap me in the face, causing Mireille to draw her sword on reaction to the sound. It seems she couldn’t settle down either.

「Giiiih!!」

There was a sudden nasty cry and a dark clump comes falling down from the trees. When I look carefully, I saw two goblins holding a spear, made from slicing the tip of a stalk of bamboo.

"It really helps when you cry like that."

I skewer the things that jumped down from the trees in mid-air and fling it away behind me.

"Gyiiiih–!"

Taking that as the signal, goblins start jumping off the trees to attack us from all directions.

"Maintain your formation! I am in the front and the rest will alternate to deal with the ones on the left and right, on the double!"

It was within our expectations to get ambushed in the cave so we didn’t panic. If we stood still, we would get surrounded and be at a disadvantage, but if we remained on the move with our horses, it would be impossible for the goblins to catch up to us with their short legs. The ones in the vanguard trample over the ones blocking the path in front and the Marcella in the middle of the squad shot through the ones coming at them one after the other with small fireballs.

"Just roughly over 100, huh? These numbers are totally not enough."

"Yes, these ones probably came out after reacting to the noise. The majority of them must be near the nest."

Celia spoke while swinging her sword, splitting open the small monsters’ heads and slicing open their stomachs. Lily was also loosing her arrows quickly from close range. At first glance, she seemed like a sweet sexy girl, but you could clearly see she’s accustomed to this.

"Hoitto"

I pierced through the head of a goblin with my sword and lifted it up. In the same manner, I skewer the second one that appeared. The last one was slightly larger and was holding a shield, but I stabbed through the goblin, shield and all, making it the third dumpling on my large sword.

"Adine, if there are this many of them, there might also be a tougher hobgoblin out there……"

"There’s something amazing like that out there?"

Lily paused, but Mireille continues on.

"It’s probably the one at the tip of your spear……"

"This one? I thought it was strange that it was larger than the others and wearing armor."

I confirmed the lifeless creature stuck on the tip of my sword and was still holding its shield and see that it’s about the size of a human.

I swing my sword and fling all three bodies off. In the end, they’re nothing but goblins.

We suffer little to no casualties, while the goblin corpses were piling up. Somehow sensing that we are different from the usual hunters and villagers they always attacked, the survivors start to run away.

"Alright, let’s chase after them, they’ll lead us to their nest."

"Slow down so we don’t get too close to them. Let them run."

It really was a lifesaver for this to happen. It saved us the trouble of having to search every inch of the cave.

I thought things would be a lot easier……」

What appeared in front of us as I slump my shoulders was a deep-looking passage, which I saw the goblins run into. It reminded me a bit to my time in the dungeon.

"If they just made their nest in the woods, it would be too open, wouldn’t it……"

Naturally, horses would not be able to enter cave and it would be harder for anyone to wield big weapon. To top it off, considering many goblins had holed up in there, it would definitely smelly and be quite dirty.

It’s not like we could just leave the cave alone. If we had a ton of oil, we could pour it and set it aflame, but since we don’t, we have no choice but to walk in ourselves.

"I in the vanguard will defend, counter and it will get harder to swing your spears. Make it so that it’s easier to unsheathe your swords when they jump at you!"

Following my instructions, the girls enter the passage.

"They were probably multiplying inside the cave, so that’s why they didn’t get noticed."

"That’s probably the case. From what I can see, there has been no signs of digging, so it might just be a naturally large cave."

They made their nest in such a troublesome place. Not to mention, as soon we got in, one of them jumps out at me from our flank, and when I smashed it on reflex, some strange liquid comes out of it. The goblins were dirty and their bodily fluids smell. 

The cave was large and deep, but its structure was simple and fairly straightforward to navigate. When we walked through the narrow corridor, tight enough that no person could pass by when they lined up beside each other, we reached a large circular cavity containing many more smaller openings leading to neighboring rooms. In that large space is the scene that we have long-awaited for.

"Roughly…… 500, it’s better in a place without trees, isn’t it?"

Brita and the girls look somewhat overwhelmed by the numbers.

"Gigiiii—!!"

"Gyiiii!!"

Those disgusting shrieked echo in the cave and it’s quite unpleasant.

"Adine…… no matter how……this is too much……"

Lily held her bow at the ready and drew close to my side.

This much was nothing, in fact it’s just right. Now, it’s much less disappointing than having only 100 waiting for us, where the task will be completed after each of us crushed twenty creatures.

"Lily, stand back and support me with your bow. Mireille , protect Lily."

"But, then-!"

I grip my spear with all my might. The ceiling was pretty high so it didn’t look like my sword will scrape against it when I swing it around.

"Stand back. I’m going to swing with all my strength."

When I smiled and held my sword with both hands, the nearby girls hurriedly put some distance between us. I supposed they would avoid me until I showed my back to the enemy.

The girls shouted and the goblins also gave a louder shriek in response. Standing at the front, I charged in and let the enemy taste a large swing of my spear.

"Dorryaa!!"

It’s a full swing of my spear with both hands. A group of five that clumped together to attack me scatter into messy parts all at once. The larger sized pieces fly back towards the other goblins and hit them, causing them to stumble. Stumbling amongst a large crowd of charging allies is fatal and they are crushed into formless paste beneath their feet. I might have achieved killing 10 of them in just a single swing.

I bring the sword close to me after swinging it out and once again prepare for another full-power swing, this time spinning my entire body as well to blow away enemies in all directions. There were some that jump at my chest, but a single kick knocks them out, rendering them motionless. To the goblins that are only 1 m tall, a kick from my iron-studded boots was a fatal blow.

There were 100 of them mobbing around me. They weren’t that powerful or quick, but they could be a handful for a single person to deal with.

"Maybe I’ll use this."

I held my axe with one hand and use the other hand to grab the leg of a struggling goblin. It’s a little short, but I couldn't use it like a club. Even if it broke, there were plenty of replacements.

I rampaged while switching from club to club, beating down those small fries rather than slicing them up. After the leg of my third club tore off, the enemy stopped coming at me head-on.

"Giiiih!,"

Reacting to the noise from behind me, I contort my body to avoid the spear being thrust at me. I grab and break the tip of the spear, which is just a primeval object made with a sharpened stone on a stick, causing the goblin to have a clear expression of terror on its face. While thinking that they might actually have high intelligence, I use the tip of the spear to pierce its head.

When I evaded another goblin that charges at me, it trip and fell forward. I rest my foot on its head and look around me. It appeared I charged too far forward and separated myself from the others, causing the others to get surrounded. Brita was shouting worriedly but I was having an unexpectedly enjoyable time fighting over here.

The overall state of battle wasn’t bad.. A fair amount of corpses are piling at their feet and if they continue to persist, it should get easier soon.

"Gyiiiih–!! Gyiiih—!!"

Oops, I forgot my foot was still on its head. I shifted the rest of my weight on my foot to crush the goblin’s skull and survey my surroundings. The goblins were constantly trying to intimidate me with their loud shrieks, but are not trying to jump at me. As a test, I thrusted my spear at them and kill two, but they just widen their circle. It’s a good time to return to Brita, I guess.

"Adine! Geez! Don’t just charge out there and overdo yourself to that extent!!"

We thrust forward and pull back according to orders and the enemy collapsed in front of them one after the other. They instantly recovered the distance lost in the beginning and were continuing to move even further forward. The goblins’ numbers continued to decrease and they are starting to get indecisive. When they try to run but couldn’t get away, they realized that the only exit they could escape from was behind us.

The outcome of the battle had been decided, and just when I thought the only thing left to do was to kill every single one of them, a large axe struck the wall of spears and knocked the ground.

"It’s huge……"

The boss was around the same size as I was. It was similar to a hobgoblin except slightly larger, however it wasn’t large enough to be anything special. The problem with the enemy, who is equipped with iron armour, is the thing between his legs. His large dick was swinging around.

The ordinary goblins weren’t particularly trying to hide their crotch area so you could say they are exposing themselves too, but this one is obviously larger.

Brita couldn’t stand the offensive sight and threw her knives – one bounced off his armour and the other one gets deflected with his axe. It appeared that this goblin was the boss based on his skill and not just because he had a big dick. If he bulldozed his way forward, he might kill someone.

"Guoooh"

The goblin boss looked at Brita the one who threw the knives, as his cock swelled up. It’s true Brita was a nice woman, who you’d love to fuck, but that act deserves a thousand deaths.

"I’ll do it. Stand back."

There’s no need to state my name when facing off against a monster. In one breath, I charged forward with a thrust and aimed for his throat, but it blocked the attack by turning his axe sideways. Following that, I also aimed for his chest and stomach, but both attacks were met with his axe. Since he didn’t hold a shield, he was able to move quite deftly.

As I’m in admiration as to how this thing can be so ugly yet so skilled, the goblin swings his axe at me thinking I’ve faltered. I swing my spear and meet his weapon with the blade of the spear. As soon as I did so, he slips backwards and loses balance.

The power behind the swing of my spear is incomparable with a thrust. Not to mention, my spear is probably heavier than his large axe. The fact that he’s trying to compete with me in strength already means the end of the line for him.

In no time, I repeat my strikes a second and third time, and although he somehow blocks them, a step is taken backwards every time. The full-powered fourth attack shatters his axe and drops the goblin to its knees at the same time.

「Guoooh!!」

He reaches for a replacement club at his waist in a panic, but that wooden object shouldn’t be able to block my attack. The club splits in two and his right hand was also sliced off.

"Gaaaaaaah!!!"

It’s settled. I don’t know whether I should kill him, but there were still many goblins. I need to show them that their boss was dead and turned them into a group of trapped rats.

I swing my spear down on the boss’s head as he’s holding his severed hand. The spear slams against the ground and after a brief silence, the boss split in half vertically. The body fluids and entrails of the monster flow out and a tremendously horrid stench wafts in the air. The goblins standing behind the boss didn’t make a sound and look on in shock. 

The number was still overwhelming. Marcella shot dozens of goblins, burning them into crisps before catching her breath.

As I was slashing goblins Tutorial appeared one after another notifying how my girls and I killed goblins but I had no time reading then, until important messages came.

"You level up. You gain 2 attribute points." So, allocated 2 points.

Name: Adine

Age: 15     (1 Year : 10 days : 1 Hour 20 minutes : 11 seconds)

Race: Ghoul

Level: 19

Experience: 1,000 / 5,000

Money: 3,640 gold coins

Attributes:

Stamina   42

Durability  20 

Natural healing  5 

Hand strength  17

Leg Strength  9

Body strength  1

Hand speed  12

Leg speed  10

Reflexes  13

Instinct  20

Magic Point  1

Magic Power  1

Then, another one.

"Brita has leveled up. You gain 2 attribute points for her."

I allocated accordingly.

Nama: Brita

Race: Human

Age: 15

Job: Warrior / Scout

Durability: 7

Stamina: 8

Hand strength: 7

Hand speed: 8

Leg Strength: 5

Leg Speed: 20

Far-sight: 20

And another one.

"Marcella has levelled up. You gain 2 attribute points for her."

I allocated accordingly. I gave her 1 point to her magic Point to replenish her magic reserve in our current battle.

Name: Marcella

Race: Human, Age: 14

Job: Arcane Mage

Magic Power: 17

Magic Point: 21

Durability: 10

Stamina: 4

Hand Strength: 3

Hand Speed: 2

Leg Strength: 2

Leg Speed: 2

Reflex: 2

Instinct: 2

"Adine. I feel my magic has recovered. I can fire more spells.!" I showed her thumb up and asked Leliana to cover her.

While she continued showering goblins everywhere with her small fireballs and accumulated the most kill count, another goblin leader showed up. He was over 2 meters tall. By his side was a goblin with a horn, possibly his messenger. 

I immediately jumped to him with four consecutive combo slashing. He parried 2 but another 2 cut deeply his left leg and right hand. He tumbled to the left so I hit him with an axe. He defended against but fell to the ground. I stored the axe into my dimension, withdrew my sword and stab his neck.

"You killed a HobGoblin. You gain 150 experience points." 

I made two combo slashed to the goblins with horn. He parried one but I cut his neck. 

"You killed a rare goblin. You gain 70 experience points."

On the other side, the girls were doing fine with Marcella at the centre, shooting small fireballs. 

Suddenly, my armour was burning.

"Adine, you were burning. There were 2 goblins who shot fireballs on your right side." Brita shouted.

There were 2 goblins jumping happily as they shot me with fireballs. I couldn't reach them as I was being blocked by goblins. Brita used her incredible speed to run past goblins towards the fire shooting goblins. They were shocked, trying to shoot her but she was too fast.

"Brita killed 2 goblin mages. She gains 200 experience points."

Marcella fired a huge fireball to goblins that gathered at one place. Around 50 goblins were killed. But Marcella bent down and panting. It seemed shooting non-stop had taken toll on her magic point. 

"Marcella, could you fire more spells?" I shouted from distance. She shook her head.

Brita used her quick leg to running in circle while killing goblins. She seemed to be breathing hard as well. Mireille was beside Leliana killing goblins in front of Lily and Marcella. Then, Lily appeared to have no more arrows left. She took out a dagger and attacked goblins. The number of goblins dwindled greatly but the girls were exhausted. I was deterred by goblins from reaching them. 

Suddenly, 3 human men pushed from the side of the girls. 

"Ben. Meyer. Sam !" Mireille seemed to recognize them. Could they the surviving members of mercenaries group?

The girls including Brita regroup together. The could rest as the three guys were protecting them.

As the girls were no longer in danger, I could focus on killing the remaining goblins.

After about half an hour, to there were goblin corpses everywhere and no more goblins.

We survived.