I didn't give her a choice. As the four explorers closed the distance, their eyes locked on the shimmering light of the Essence, I shoved Erwen forward.
"Hey?!" she yelped, stumbling right into the orb.
Shaaaaa—!
The light coiled around her like a living thing, sinking into her skin. The red-haired leader of the rival group skidded to a halt ten meters away, his face twisting into a mask of pure rage.
"You crazy bastard!" he screamed. "That essence was ours!"
"Ours?" I stepped forward, looming over them with my hammer held low. "I don't see your names on it. If you want it, come take it out of her. I'll fight you as long as you want."
I was barking like a big dog to keep the pack at bay. They had the numbers—four against two—but they weren't stupid. The essence was gone. Killing us now was a high-risk gamble for zero payout.
"I demand compensation," the leader spat. "That goblin was ours. We were tracking it."
"Proof?" I countered. I didn't wait for an answer. "Three seconds. Decide if you're enemies or if you're leaving. Three. Two—"
"We're leaving," the man growled, backing away.
I watched them vanish into the trees, but I didn't relax. "Erwen, run. North, toward the portal. Now."
We didn't just run; we flew. Erwen was confused, thinking the danger had passed. I knew better. Those weren't high-tier explorers; they were bottom-feeders who had retreated because they were caught off guard. Now, they were hunting.
"Sir, it's a goblin!" Erwen hissed as we rounded a bend.
"Ignore it."
"But they've seen us! They're—"
Whip!
An arrow hissed from the opposite direction. I grabbed Erwen by the collar and yanked her back. A heavy bolt slammed into my shield with a bone-jarring THWACK. Not a goblin arrow. A human crossbow.
"Shut up and listen," I growled as we dove behind a thick granite-tree. "They lured the goblins to box us in. We can't reach the portal like this."
"B-But what do we do?"
"Use the essence," I ordered. "Go into stealth. Now."
Erwen panicked for a second, then her body began to shimmer. In the game, the Goblin Archer Essence granted Thief's Step. In this dark forest, she became a ghost—translucent and nearly invisible against the bark.
"Take the backpack," I whispered, handing it over. "Hide. Don't move until I give the signal. When you see the crossbowman, put an arrow in his throat."
"Wait! What's the signal?!"
I didn't answer. I was already charging back toward the sound of the approaching goblins.
The battle was a nightmare of multi-tasking. Ten goblins swarmed me. I had to dodge their carving knives while keeping my shield angled against the unseen crossbowman in the trees.
Clang!
A bolt dented the iron rim of my shield.
Stab!
A goblin knife found my thigh. I ignored the sting of poison and crushed the attacker's head. I was a whirlwind of barbarian fury, trading flesh for kills. Seven goblins down.
Whiiiiip—STAB!
A goblin arrow bypassed my guard and buried itself deep in my left elbow. The joint locked instantly. My arm went numb.
"Shit."
I dropped the hammer. My left arm was useless, so I took the shield in my right hand. I wasn't an attacker anymore; I was a wall. I crushed the remaining three goblins with the edge of the shield, then stood alone in the clearing, bleeding from five different places.
The forest went silent. Then, three figures stepped out of the brush. The redhead, a swordsman with a katana-like blade, and a scout with a buckler. The crossbowman remained hidden, his presence a cold weight on the back of my neck.
"Barbarian," the redhead sneered. "Where's the fairy? You handed over the pack, didn't you? Tell us where she is and maybe we'll let you crawl to the portal."
I looked at them. They thought I was a spent force. A bleeding, one-armed barbarian with no weapon. They looked at me with the contempt of a predator watching a dying animal.
I slowly raised my left hand—the one paralyzed and pinned by an arrow. With a groan of pure, stubborn effort, I forced it up.
"What are you doing?" the leader asked, confused.
I extended my middle finger.
Whiiiiip!
The redhead's eyes widened. He thought the middle finger was just an insult. He didn't realize it was the highest point of my body—a perfect, stationary target.
Thunk—!
A faint sound echoed from the dark trees behind them. It wasn't the sound of my death. It was the sound of a fairy finally finding her mark.