“Gauun, guuaonh!” (Let’s move, lady!)

After cutting down the three Goblins that we had lured, Buster called out to Liz.

“Eh? I don’t understand the Kobold language.”

Even though she could see that the black-armed dog person was talking to her, Liz could not understand what he was talking about.

“Gau, gauou…” (Tsk, no choice…)

“Kyaah!? H-hey!”

Giving up on trying to communicate with her, Buster held his Greatsword in his left hand and carried the catgirl like a sack of potatoes under his right arm, as they quickly fled the house from the back.

Meanwhile, the Goblins in the plaza heard their comrade’s anguished cries and went on high alert.

“Gi, gigiuh! Gigiaoh!?” (Wh-what the heck! What happened!?)

The heavy-set wearing Goblin Heavy Fighter called out loudly looking towards the back of the house where the catgirl had hidden earlier, but none of his companions he had sent to capture her responded.

“Guah, gugiuh!!” (Shit, watch out!!)

“Giuh!!” (AYE!!)

The Goblins quickly formed a battle formation with the Goblin Heavy Warrior in the middle — four in the vanguard, two on each flank, and one in the rear guard. The rearguard Goblin, in particular, was a head taller than the other Goblins and had a muscular body.

With his back protected by the strongest of the Goblin Fighters, the Goblin Heavy Warrior stared towards the back of the house where the screams came from.

“Giauo giiigiruh!” (Go and check the situation!)

And so, the vanguard cautiously approached the place from where they last heard the screams of their unresponsive companions…

Although it was the right decision to fortify their defenses and become vigilant when they felt the presence of the enemies first. However, the order to spread out their forces to confirm the situation when they heard their companions’ screams was the most foolish thing they did. Even though it was only a short distance away, there was a significant risk that the enemy could exploit the gap in the deployment of their forces, and the guys who went to confirm the situation might be ambushed and put at a disadvantage.

(Well, it doesn’t change what we have to do, but…)

If our opponent scattered his troops, Buster and Liz, Dagger and Lancer and I will try to destroy each of them by repeating the Hit-and-Run tactics. However, if they take up a defensive formation and stand guard, we would knock them out with a magic and slash surprise attack and, depending on the result, decide whether we press on or retreat from the battle.

It was unfortunate that we were not able to cut down their numbers further, since they gathered into a defensive formation right away, but… it was also fortunate that they took on a close formation because they prioritized defense.

As I hid and peeked out to see what was going on, Buster came out from behind into the full view of the enemies after finishing off the Goblins on the other side, and…after taking a deep breath, he roared to catch the Goblins’ attention!

“Gaaruoooooooooooonn!!”

“Gia!?” (What the heck!?)

“Garugiah!” (So even the dog people have that!)

As the Goblins turned around to look behind them, the black armed, hulking Kobold rushed forward while carrying the Greatsword on his shoulders, and on either side of him were Dagger who held a blade in both hands and Liz who drew her Large Knife.

It was a simple diversionary tactic, but since they could not ignore an enemy who was approaching with an intention to kill, the gazes of the Goblins, including the huge one, were redirected towards them.

“…”

I took advantage of the opportunity and crouched low as I ran forward. Quickly determining them to be in the range of my non-human magic, I placed my hands to the ground and released my Earth Magic into the earth.

“Vorugauah, garuuaaah!” (Devour them completely, Binding Fang!)

“!!”

“Gyaaaaaaah”

“Gugea!!”

Suddenly, the Earth Fangs sprouted from the ground and pierced the Goblins one after the other, and locked their movements while inflicting wounds. This was the non-human magic, “Binding Fang”, which I had used to immobilize the bandits in Viel village before.

Unlike last time, I had not buffed myself with Battle Cry, but both the quality and the quantity of my magic had improved drastically, probably an outcome of my daily training. Therefore, the Fangs of the Earth were larger, more numerous, and more powerful than before, but…naturally, I was unable to round them all up at once.

“Guaguru vorufa…” (I took out 7 of them, huh…)

The two Goblins who were just outside the range of my “Binding Fangs”, along with the Goblin Fighter who sustained a bleeding leg wound yet raised his machete and attacked.

“Gyaoaaaaaa!” (Take thiiiiiiisssss!!)

*clash*

I blocked the attack from the machete with my short War Hammer as I stood up, with our crossed weapons as the pivot point, I half-turned and slammed the hilt of my weapon in the Goblin Fighter’s face.

“Gugi!?”

Once I gained some distance from my opponent who recoiled from the pain of the hit, Lancer, with her spear in hand, rushed out from my side like a roaring gale wind!

“Voruau kuaruaann!” (It’s all about speed!)

According to the laws of physics, kinetic energy depends on the mass and speed of the object and thus is one of the most fundamental factors that determine the penetration power of the spear. However, there was no way that a Kobold would understand such a complex reasoning, and pursuing speed during attack was just a mere guideline Lancer discovered intuitively ever since she got the Spear…

“Gugaaaaaaaah! Gah… ah… guh”

In any case, her spear pierced right through the Goblin Fighter’s gut and brought it down. And as if her defeating the opponent signaled her crossing the threshold, Lancer’s consciousness blurred as it was consumed by the white light.

……………

………

…

“Varuo…” (It’s all white…)

I suddenly found myself in a completely white space, and in front of me was a shining Silver Spiral Staircase…

I was confused for a moment, but then an incredible amount of knowledge flowed into my head, and I understood what this was. However, what was at the end of the spiral was not disclosed yet.

(Rather, I wonder if everybody had seen this before?)

It’s okay to climb, right?

“Gaon, guruon guruooa…” (I mean, everyone seems to have climbed already…)

If it were in this place, then I could understand why my friends’ appearances changed. In fact, I was just a little envious of everyone, so I was relieved when I too received congratulations and applause as I took one step, and then another, and climbed the Silver Spiral Staircase.

I did not understand why I felt that way, so the praises that came my way made me a little uncomfortable, but… that feeling was just a fleeting thought. Before long, my consciousness was bathed in white light, and I awakened back in reality.

……………

………

…

“Oouah, kuuau!!” (You’ve evolved, Lancer!!)

“Wafi?” (What?)

Lancer’s limbs and the tip of her tail had all become covered in white fur, as she held the Spear that pierced the Goblin Fighter. Also, a slightly warm wave of magical power flowed from her.

Name: Lancer (Female)

Race: Kobold

Rank: Kobold Holy Lance

Skill: Leg Strengthening (Intermediate/ Effect is Instantaneous), Primary Magic (Holy)

Title: Healer of the Forest

Weapon: Spear (Main), Dagger (Auxiliary)

Armament: Leather Armor

Since we were currently in the middle of battle,  there was no time for us to be distracted.

“Giigiu, gyaoooooo!” (How dare you do this to my friends!!)

Without caring about ripping open his wounds, the giant goblin let out a roar, as he freed himself from the “Binding Fangs” with brute force and attacked us.