Orion was ready to face the monsters now.
Strangely enough, he was excited.
The fear was still there—heavy, pressing against his chest—but beneath it burned anticipation. He couldn't stop thinking about how much stronger the D-rank monsters' magic stones would make him.
With a steady breath, Orion began walking down the hallway.
A ragged bag hung over one of his shoulders, stuffed with rusty weapons. Another held arrows, a bow slung across his back, and a sword rested firmly in his hand. He left the remaining magic stone in the chamber; he no longer had the capacity to absorb it.
Boc's Fire of Unknown Origin played in his head.
🎵 Fire of unknown origin took my baby away~ 🎵
Orion hummed quietly, trying to steady his racing nerves. Classic rock always helped calm him down.
Soon, he stood before the chamber—the D-Rank goblins lair.
He peered inside.
Most of the goblins were asleep.
The rest were still gnawing on monster flesh.
Perfect.
Orion drew his bow and aimed for the nearest goblin shaman's eye.
The arrow flew—
Straight into the goblin shaman's eye.
"GRRRRRRRKKKK—!"
A guttural scream echoed through the chamber.
Every goblin stirred at once.
Before they could fully react, Orion fired again—this time at a goblin brute's head.
The arrow struck the monster's head, but the dull, rusty tip failed to pierce its skull.
"GRRKRKRK!" the brute screamed in pain, snapping to alert. It began sniffing the air like a dog, searching for any intruders—but Orion kept his Skill: Odorless active, and the goblins failed to detect him.
"Tch."
Annoyed that the arrows are useless against their head, Orion adjusted his aim.
This time, he aimed at its eye.
One after another, arrows punched through four goblin eyes, dropping them howling to the ground.
Just as he nocked another arrow—
"SKRRREEEEE!"
A goblin shaman noticed him. And it shot a fireball at Orion
He leapt aside.
CRASH!
The wall behind him exploded into rubble.
'Shit… that was one powerful attack.'
Orion swallowed, eyes locked on the shattered stone.
'I need to be careful of the goblin mages.'
By Now, every goblin had noticed him.
All the goblin charged at him at once.
Their speed was terrifying.
'If I fight them in the hallway, I'll have the advantage,' Orion thought. 'They won't be able to swarm me all at once.'
His Flash Movement had just come off cooldown.
He activated it instantly, retreating into the narrow hallway.
From a safe distance, Orion fired an arrow at the approaching swarm—
But a goblin shaman stepped forward and blasted it aside with a fireball.
"Tch… annoying bastard."
Orion already hated goblins.
But goblin shaman?
He despised them.
Shoo—shoo—shoo!
Three arrows flew in rapid succession, all aimed at the shaman's eyes.
Two were deflected by its magic.
But the third one hit.
"GRRRRKKK!"
The mage collapsed, clutching its face.
But another goblin mage immediately took its place.
Orion's eyes widened in shock at the precision of their planned formation.
'They're… organized?'
"Strong and intelligent. Just my fucking luck."
"SKREE—!"
A goblin brute lunged at him.
Orion activated everything he had—Scale Manifestation, Flame Pulse—tanking several attacks head-on.
Then—
CRACK!
A goblin shaman's club smashed into his ribs.
Orion was sent flying.
RUMBLE.
"COUGH—COUGH!"
He slammed into the wall, blood spilling from his mouth.
Pain surged through his body.
But the more pain he felt—
The sharper his instincts became.
His eyes narrowed.
Claws extended.
Orion rushed the two approaching goblin shamans.
Slash. Slash.
"GRRRK—!"
"HRKK—!"
Their necks split open.
They collapsed, writhing in agony.
Orion didn't stop.
He pierced both their skulls with his claws.
Blood sprayed everywhere—warm, sticky, coating his face.
And Orion…
He smiled.
A wide, unhinged smile spread across his face.
An unfamiliar sensation surged through him, impossible to explain. He felt a thrill at the sight of blood splattering from the goblins.
'What the fuck is wrong with me' he thought for a moment.
The goblins sensed the change within Orion. For the first time, they hesitated—sensation of fear ran through them.
Orion spun, ripping a sword from his bag.
Four goblin brutes charged him as two goblin shaman launched fireballs from behind.
He weaved left and right, dodging flames.
The brutes struck their dull swords at him while his guard was down.
Orion reacted as fast as he can and defended himself with his scaled hand.
Two blades slammed into his scaled arms.
The other two clashed against his sword.
Orion was now cornered.
Thinking fast, Orion released his grip on the sword, leapt backward with all his might, and unleashed his skill Flame Pulse.
Heat from the flame pulse skill washed over the goblins, burning their skin.
But they didn't stop, as the skill did very little damage to a strong monster.
'It barely hurts them…'
The most useless fucking skill,' Orion snarled, as more goblins closed in around him.
Then—
Dizziness hit him.
His vision blurred.
A goblin shaman stood ahead, green energy swirling in its hands.
Poison.
'I need to kill that one. Right now.'
Orion sprinted forward.
Two goblin brutes intercepted him, long swords slashing down.
He dodged, stabbed one through the heart, and decapitated the other with his claws.
Two more brutes replaced them instantly.
The poison was now effecting deeper into his body, sending waves of pain through him. Dizziness washed over him, making it hard to stay upright.
But Orion swallowed the pain and hurled his sword at the brutes.
It pierced one brute's skull.
"Gr....." the brute died on the spot.
BAAM!
He kicked the other aside, then leapt—
Straight at the goblin shaman.
The goblin screamed, spell charging—
Orion laughed through the pain and cleaved its head open with his claw.
But—
Too late.
A massive club slammed into his back.
He flew again. And hit the wall.
CRASH.
"COUGH—COUGH!"
Blood splattered the floor from his mouth.
Orion struggled to rise.
Ah… man… not again,' he muttered, frustration bubbling as he kept getting hurt.
Since waking up in this hellhole, it had been nothing but pain and despair.
No rest.
No mercy.
The remaining goblins—about fifteen—charged, eager to exploit his weakness.
Orion threw weapons blindly from his bag.
Two more fell.
But it wasn't enough.
He ran, desperate to escape the situation.
His legs burned.
His vision faded white.
Stamina—gone.
Just as his consciousness was about to slip—
Something changed.
He felt something taking control of him, and a strange, burning power surged within his body.
The power was overwhelming. He felt like he was invincible now.
"What the fuck is happening…?" he whispered, confused and scared.
His body moved on its own.
"No—wait—listen to me, goddamn it!"
Orion was terrified.
He had no control over his actions.
Flames erupted around him.
His entire body ignited.
The goblins froze—shaking in fear.
The walls trembled.
"SKREEEEE!"
"KRSSSHHH—!"
"'HOLY SHIT—someone HELP ME!' he screamed. He didn't know if his situation was improving, since the goblins were no longer a threat… or if it was getting worse, now that something unknown seemed to be controlling his body."
The goblins tried to flee.
But it was too late.
The flames around Orion's body exploded outward.
The flame swallowed everything. The goblins were reduced to nothing but ash.
The chamber collapsed.
And Orion was buried beneath the debris—
Again.
Rustle.
Thud.
After a while, Orion clawed his way free.
"Cough—cough…"
"What the hell… was that?"
Fear crawled through him.
The power he'd felt—
It was terrifying.
Almost Godlike.
Then, a deep, imposing voice echoed in his mind.
"Congratulations, child of the draconic."
"You have passed the trial."
"…Huh?"