Subutai approached cautiously, his eyes widening in surprise. Three men were fighting against four goblins.
The corpses he had seen earlier along the way were likely the remains of this very battle.
It seemed the three men had been fighting for a long time. They were exhausted, badly wounded, and shouting desperately at one another.
"Watch your back! One of them is circling around!" a young man shouted.
The middle-aged man gasped for breath and turned around. A skinny man looked at the other two with difficulty.
"I can't hold on much longer…"
"I'm exhausted… I feel like I'm going to collapse and fall asleep any second…"
Bloodshot eyes, the young man raised his sword and shouted angrily.
"Hang in there! If you show weakness now, it's over for all of us!"
He slashed at a goblin's shoulder, but his weakened strike barely cut through.
Sensing their exhaustion, the remaining goblins grew more aggressive, attempting to surround them.
The middle-aged man clenched his teeth.
"This is insane…"
"We fought all night yesterday, didn't sleep, and kept moving all day… I don't have much strength left…"
Their breathing grew heavier, their strength visibly fading.
Seeing this, the goblins went berserk. Their eyes glowed blood-red as they charged, screaming wildly.
"Grahhh! Grahhh!"
At that moment.
Subutai burst out from behind the goblins like a bolt of lightning. He closed in on the nearest one, gripping his spear tightly and thrusting with all his might.
The spear pierced straight through the goblin's heart. The sound of bones breaking echoed clearly.
The goblin's eyes widened. Dark green blood gushed from its mouth as it collapsed lifelessly to the ground.
[You have killed a "Goblin."]
Without giving the next goblin time to understand what had happened, Subutai continued his assault.
He yanked the spear free and slashed violently from the goblin's abdomen up to its shoulder.
Flesh and bone split apart. The goblin screamed in agony before collapsing.
[You have killed a "Goblin."]
The remaining two goblins froze in terror. Their bodies trembled as they tried to retreat and flee.
Subutai didn't give them the chance.
He stepped back, tightened his grip on the shaft, and hurled the spear forward with all his strength.
The spear whistled through the air and pierced straight through a goblin's chest.
The goblin trembled, eyes wide open, unable even to scream as it fell, drowning in its own green blood.
[You have killed a "Goblin."]
The last goblin, witnessing this massacre, shook uncontrollably in fear.
Seizing the opportunity, the three men who had been fighting desperately to survive regained their courage and surrounded it together.
They slashed from multiple directions, giving the goblin no chance to fight back.
Finally, riddled with wounds, the goblin collapsed heavily to the ground.
Silence fell over the battlefield, now soaked in green blood.
"Thank you for helping us."
"If you hadn't stepped in, the three of us might have died."
The middle-aged man stepped forward, steadying his breath.
Subutai nodded as he pulled his spear out of a goblin's corpse.
"How did you end up this injured against just a few goblins?" he asked.
The middle-aged man sighed.
"This place called the Tower isn't easy. Yesterday, there were six of us when we arrived on the first floor. But…"
Subutai interrupted him in shock.
"What? You were six before entering the first floor?"
"I woke up alone."
The man frowned.
"Yes, all six of us woke up together. Why were you alone?"
Subutai shrugged, doubt creeping into his mind.
"If others woke up in groups, why was I alone?"
Keeping his thoughts to himself, he replied calmly.
"I don't know. I was alone from the moment I woke up. Luckily, I managed to exploit the goblins' weaknesses and made it to the first floor."
The man stared at him in amazement.
"So you killed goblins by yourself? That's incredible…"
"We were six, and even then, it was barely possible."
"Goblins may have weak defense, but their attacks are brutal. One mistake and you could lose your life."
Subutai nodded and offered advice.
"Throw dirt into their eyes. Once they can't see, they're helpless."
The three men quickly understood and nodded.
At that moment, the skinny young man asked curiously,
"You must have some special profession, right? You killed three goblins like it was nothing."
Subutai smiled faintly.
"You could say that."
The middle-aged man's eyes lit up.
"Then why don't you join us? This place is dangerous. It's especially hard to survive alone—especially at night."
He sighed deeply.
"Nights in the Tower are deadly. Goblins will surround you silently while you sleep."
"Last night, there were six of us… by morning, only three remained."
Subutai fell silent.
"Being near them makes me feel weaker."
"If I travel with them, my passive ability won't activate."
"I'm stronger when I'm alone…"
After a moment, he shook his head.
"No. I'm used to being alone."
The three exchanged glances but didn't argue.
The middle-aged man spoke softly.
"Then at least let us tell you what we know about the Tower."
Subutai nodded and listened carefully.
"There are many other people in this forest most of them Mongolians."
"So we came to a conclusion."
"People tend to wake up near others who were close to them before entering the Tower."
The man sat down, clearly exhausted. The others followed, and he continued.
"All six of us lived close to one another. That night, we were all at home… and then woke up in the same place."
He looked at Subutai.
"To advance to the next floor, you must defeat the boss monster in the center of the forest."
"It's called the 'Goblin Warrior,' and it's accompanied by over twenty goblins."
His body trembled slightly, as if recalling something terrifying.
"There was someone with a special class like yours… No"
"Someone even stronger than you."
"He was shooting arrows from an incredible distance, shattering goblins' heads."
"We searched for him but couldn't find him. His arrows glowed blue and slowly vanished after striking the ground."
"You need to be careful."
Even the two men sitting behind him were visibly shaking.
"Thank you for the warning," Subutai said, then turned and walked away alone.
The three men silently watched his back fade into the forest.
Thinking about how easily his spear pierced goblins like paper, Subutai cherished it like a priceless treasure. He wiped the blood-soaked tip with his clothes.
After walking for several minutes, he heard the rustling of leaves.
Turning toward the sound.
Nine goblins were advancing straight toward him.