The dirt road stretched endlessly before Krad as Ustina's walls disappeared behind him. The Kingdom of Darkness waited somewhere ahead, beyond forests and valleys he couldn't yet see. His minimap pulsed steadily, a reassuring heartbeat guiding him forward.
"This is gonna be awesome!" Krad pumped his fist, startling a nearby bird into flight. "First, I get a super cool weapon from the Kingdom of Darkness, then I level up to twenty, then I find that mage and---"
A scream tore through the peaceful afternoon.
"Help me! Please!"
Krad's entire body tensed. His feet stopped moving, but his mind raced ahead. Every instinct told him to run toward the sound, but the potion seller's warning echoed in his head.
Not everyone who smiles at you is a friend.
"Help!"
"Okay, okay, I'm going!" He darted off the path, weaving between trees with practiced ease. "But if this is a trap, I'm gonna be really annoyed!"
[ Caution is advised. ]
The system's text appeared briefly.
"Yeah, yeah, I know!" Krad whispered, dropping into a crouch as he approached the clearing. "I'm being careful, see? Super stealthy!"
[ You just announced your presence. ]
Krad peeked around a massive oak tree, and his breath caught. An Elf woman lay on the ground, her white robes torn and stained with dirt. Four goblins circled her like vultures, their green skin glistening with something Krad really didn't want to identify. Their laughter sounded like rocks grinding together.
[ Enemy Detected: Level 5 Goblins | HP: 300 each ]
"Four against one?" Krad's hands curled into fists. "That's not a fair fight at all!"
[ Technically, you're also outnumbered. ]
"Details!" Krad stepped into the clearing, his voice ringing out clear and confident. "Hey, ugly! How about you pick on someone who can actually fight back?"
The goblins spun around, their red eyes focusing on him with disturbing intensity. One of them grinned, revealing teeth that looked like they'd never met a toothbrush.
Krad didn't wait for introductions.
He activated Evade, the world blurring as he moved. One second he stood at the clearing's edge, the next he was behind the nearest goblin, his fist already in motion. The impact sent the creature flying into a tree trunk with a satisfying crack. It burst into ash before it even hit the ground.
"One down!" Krad spun to face the others, grinning despite the danger. "Who's next?"
The three goblins shrieked, coordinating with an intelligence that made Krad's stomach twist. Two rushed him head-on while the third circled wide, trying to flank him.
"Oh, so you guys are the smart kind of goblin. Great." Krad ducked under a wild swipe, feeling the air whistle past his ear. "Just my luck!"
He twisted into a spinning kick that caught the second goblin square in the chest. The creature exploded into glowing particles, and Krad landed in a crouch, already scanning for the next threat.
Then something changed.
The two remaining goblins stopped moving. Their bodies convulsed, muscles bulging beneath their skin as black veins spread like cracks across their faces. Their snarls deepened into something that sounded almost... human.
"Uh, Buddy?" Krad backed up a step. "What's happening to them?"
[ Warning: Mutated Goblins | HP: 500 each ]
"Mutated?!" Krad's eyes widened. "That's a thing that can happen?!"
The first mutated goblin lunged faster than should have been possible. Krad barely twisted aside, but not quite far enough. Sharp claws raked across his side, and white-hot pain exploded through his ribs. His black shirt immediately began turning red.
"Okay, that hurt!" Krad pressed a hand to his side, feeling warm blood seep between his fingers. "That really hurt!"
The second goblin struck from behind. Krad felt the claws tear across his back before his brain even registered the movement. He stumbled forward, gasping as fire spread through his muscles.
[ Status: Poisoned | Paralysis Imminent ]
"Poisoned?" Krad's voice cracked slightly. His legs suddenly felt like they were made of lead. "Come on, that's not fair!"
He dropped to one knee, his vision swimming. The world tilted sideways, and only his stubborn refusal to fall kept him from face-planting into the dirt. Through the haze, he could see the mutated goblins approaching, their claws dripping with his blood.
"Please, don't kill him!" The Elf's voice sounded distant, like she was shouting from underwater.
[ Sixty seconds until paralysis wears off. ]
The system informed him clinically.
[ Current HP: 23/120 ]
"Sixty seconds?" Krad tried to laugh, but it came out as more of a wheeze. "I've got like five seconds before these guys turn me into goblin chow!"
The goblins raised their claws. Krad could see his reflection in those blood-stained talons, could see how pale his face had become. His HP continued to tick downward as the poison worked through his system.
"This is bad," he thought, and for the first time since entering this world, genuine fear crept into his heart. "This is really, really bad."
His vision darkened at the edges. The goblins' triumphant snarls faded into a distant buzz. Everything felt heavy, so heavy, like someone had replaced his bones with stone.
Sometimes, the bravest thing you can do is to protect others.
The words came from nowhere and everywhere at once. Krad didn't know if they were a memory, a thought, or something else entirely. But they cut through the darkness like a blade.
His eyes snapped open.
"No." The word came out as a growl. "No way am I dying here!"
Something ignited inside him, burning away the poison's fog. His muscles screamed in protest, but he forced them to move anyway. Blood dripped from his wounds as he stood, but his eyes blazed with determination.
"I've still got that mage to find!" Krad's fists trembled, but not from weakness. "I've still got to get to the Kingdom of Darkness! And I haven't even eaten dinner yet!"
The first mutated goblin lunged, claws extended.
Krad met it head-on.
"I said---" His fist crashed into the goblin's chest with enough force to create a shockwave. "Get out of my way!"
The creature exploded into ash, and Krad was already moving toward the last one. His body protested every movement, but he pushed through the pain. He'd fought ten Devourer Slimes in worse condition than this.
The final goblin hesitated, its red eyes flickering with something that might have been fear.
"Smart choice," Krad said, then grinned fiercely. "Too bad you made it too late!"
He launched himself into the air, his leg drawn back for a devastating kick. The world seemed to slow as he descended, his foot connecting with the goblin's skull with a thunderous crack. The impact cratered the ground, sending dirt and rocks flying in every direction.
When the dust settled, the goblin was gone, reduced to nothing but fading ash.
[ Merciless Hit! ]
Krad stood in the center of the crater, breathing hard, blood still seeping from his wounds. His legs wobbled, threatening to give out.
"See?" he said to no one in particular. "Told you... fists were... awesome..."
His stomach growled loudly enough to echo across the clearing.
"Oh, come on!" Krad clutched his stomach with his non-bloody hand. "Really? Now?!"
"You... saved me," the Elf said, staring at him with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"Yeah, no problem!" Krad tried to stand up straighter and immediately regretted it. "Ow. Okay, maybe a small problem. Hey, you wouldn't happen to have any food, would you? I'm starving!"
The Elf blinked several times. "You just fought mutated goblins while poisoned and paralyzed, and you're asking about food?"
"Listen." Krad held up one finger seriously. "Fighting makes me hungry. Being poisoned makes me hungry. Almost dying definitely makes me hungry. So right now, I'm like, triple hungry. You got anything? A sandwich? Some bread? I'd even take vegetables at this point!"
Despite everything, the Elf laughed. It was a musical sound that seemed to make the remaining darkness in the clearing retreat. "I am Hanan. I owe you a great debt, brave warrior."
"I'm Krad, and I'm seriously about to eat tree bark if you don't help me out here."
Hanan's laugh brightened. "Very well, Master Krad. I invite you to our village as my honored guest. We'll prepare a feast worthy of your heroism."
"A feast?!" Krad's eyes lit up so brightly they could have guided ships. "With meat? And bread? And those little potato things? Oh man, I'm so in! When do we leave? Can we leave now? Let's leave now!"
Hanan's smile faltered as she lifted her wrists, revealing chains that glowed with a sickly green light. "First, these chains. You have the key from the goblins, yes?"
"Oh! Right!" Krad pulled up his inventory, scrolling through the items. "Let's see... Emergency Flare, nope. Goblin Gems, nope. Chicken Poop---why do I have chicken poop?!"
You picked it up earlier. You pick up everything.
"Not helping, Buddy!" Krad continued scrolling. "Aha! Goblin's Key!"
The chains fell away with a satisfying click, and immediately the air around Hanan began to shimmer. Pink light swirled around her hands as she whispered words in a language Krad didn't recognize. The light grew brighter, forming into a circular portal that hummed with gentle energy.
"This portal leads directly to Kubo, my village," Hanan explained.
Krad peered into the swirling pink energy, his head tilted. "So... I just walk through? And I'll end up somewhere with food?"
"Yes."
"And not, like, inside a volcano? Or a monster's stomach? Or---"
"Master Krad."
"---floating in the middle of the ocean? Or buried underground? Or---"
"The portal is perfectly safe," Hanan said patiently. "The only danger is standing here until it fades away."
"Right, right!" Krad nodded enthusiastically, then paused. "But it definitely goes to the place with food, right? Just checking."
Hanan sighed, but her eyes sparkled with amusement. "Yes, Master Krad. It goes to the place with food."
"Awesome!" Krad stepped toward the portal, then stopped and looked back at the battlefield. The craters from his attacks, the scorch marks, the lingering ash, evidence of a fight he'd barely survived.
"Hey, Buddy?" he said quietly. "Add those goblins to the list."
[ What list? ]
"The list of things that corrupted mage is responsible for." Krad's expression turned serious. "Those goblins didn't mutate on their own. Someone did that to them. Just like those slimes."
[ That's quite an assumption. ]
"Maybe." Krad's fists clenched. "But I'm gonna find out. And when I do..."
He didn't finish the thought. Instead, he turned back to the portal and grinned at Hanan.
"Alright! Let's go eat!"
Without hesitation, Krad stepped through the swirling pink energy and vanished, leaving behind only his laughter and the fading echoes of battle.