The goblin village was small, as expected, with only 20 huts, which looked more like tents, except for a considerably larger hut built just beyond the center of the village. This one was made of wood and stone, rather than twigs, grass, and hides like many others.
From his vantage point, Connor could see that the village was organized with a central area and five smaller areas. Each area consisted of five huts close together and a small fire pit in the "center," these five areas surrounding the village's "central square" where the largest hut stood.
Or at least it would have been that way, if it weren't for the boulders scattered throughout the area. The strategy worked to a certain extent; even with Aether-enhanced physical abilities and weekly body enhancements during the Ordeal, it was clear that not everyone achieved the same results, especially considering they were throwing boulders usually half the size of a door.
Most of them missed the moment and didn't advance far beyond the walls, forming a semi-barricade just beyond the entrance. Fortunately, they still caused considerable damage by throwing boulders from three directions, with at least seven huts completely destroyed and others toppling over or with boulders embedded in the roofs and walls.
The only intact structure was the central hut and a pyre right next to it. Connor honestly couldn't understand how such a place could support more than 100 individuals, not counting the mounted goblin wolves.
As expected, the boulders didn't just crush the huts; Connor could see several goblins who had become mere blood stains beneath several boulders, while the unluckiest had varying degrees of crushed limbs but were still alive. There were also several lying on the ground with arrows in their bodies, often more than four.
He expected to feel a revulsion at the sight of onslaughts and severed limbs. But perhaps the constant trips to the Ordeal and the frequent clashes with the goblins and other hills had accustomed him to the blood, as he barely bothered the scene he helped create.
The fact that they weren't human might have helped, but Connor felt slightly bad for not feeling even a shred of pity for the creatures.
A quick count of the original 130+ goblins probably dropped the number to 74 or somewhere around 80, just from the initial attack. Connor had no experience with large-scale attacks like this, but he believed they could get in without much trouble.
Before he could go downstairs and report to the others, he saw the door of the largest hut open and out came the goblins he sometimes still saw in his nightmares. They were different from last time, but Connor would never forget them; all of them were taller than normal goblins.
Some were more muscular, while others were thinner, one wearing a black robe and another nearly naked, with only a loincloth, a necklace of bones and feathers, a staff, and several strange markings around his body.
And then the largest of them all emerged, almost as tall as Connor, with a weapon that was somewhere between a greatsword and a butcher's cleaver, almost too big for his body. For a brief moment, Connor almost found it comical that the weapon reminded him of Anna, but that feeling passed as quickly as it came.
The sight of Anna using her spear brought a sense of awe that someone so small could wield something so large and with such dedication, and the overall appearance could even be described as adorable or cute.
But he, none of that, evoked only a sense of menace and a direct, primal, and inevitable brutality. Connor had to force himself not to scream at the sight of him, had to force himself not to draw his bow and try to attack him now while he couldn't see him, and had to force himself not to faint when he realized that him had been staring at him ever since he left the hut with the other goblins.
***********************
(The Baron's Knights)
'Huh? Because I'm looking at the sky, just now I was...– Ah!!!!!!'
After remembering what he was supposed to be doing, the knight realized the pain coursing through his body.
At least, in the parts that were still intact enough to respond.
Looking down, he saw his legs crushed after being thrown by the thing that was still among the others. And among other figures he couldn't make out, but he knew the cries of 'Gigigigi' from the logbook he'd read.
Amid the chaos happening in what had once been the camp, a huge shadow, almost 5 meters tall, rose. While it struck with its large paws a poor wretch who had tried to distract it while the magicians worked.
The only thing that could be discerned amidst the shadows that enveloped the creature were its red eyes. They didn't glow with fury or hunger, just with a light of recognition that there were creatures in his people but they could do nothing to him.
The mages still standing tried to launch fireballs, lightning bolts, and energy beams that could leave holes in castle walls. Even if they couldn't destroy the walls, they still caused extensive damage.
But on that creature?
The fur barely burned where it was hit. That was on the few occasions when the mages' blows were lucky enough to hit a more vulnerable area.
To make matters worse for the knights, even when they did hit, that area was quickly healed by the shadows that enveloped the creature.
Even though they weren't high-ranking, they were still knights and managed to respond well to the creature's attack and noticed its only weak point: its eyes.
Not only did they serve to show where the creature was, but they were also the only spot where the hard hide didn't completely cover it. Apart from the mouth, between the two, it was obvious which one wanted the easiest spot to hit.
Even having discovered the creature's weakness, striking it was another matter. Despite its size, its eyes were small, and the creature was fast, very fast. Even a low-ranking knight like him knew what happened when something big, heavy, and fast hit you.
His condition now was no surprise.
And finally, he saw right in the eye those responsible for this chaos.
The wizard and the two assistants who had come earlier were simply observing the deaths. Were they appreciating their plan or making sure no one survived?
Either of these alternatives wouldn't surprise him.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't muster the strength to pull out one of the special potions that might, at the very least, save his life. Maybe because he was already nearly dead, maybe because deep down he knew the potion had broken and he couldn't bear to see his only hope literally shattered.
In this situation, where any sound could end in certain death, the only thing he could do was try to endure the pain, pray that he would survive, and never return to this damned place.
Until then, he could only look up at the sky and try to remember exactly when things went wrong.
Was it the fact that they didn't even hear the three? Didn't stop the mage's attack? Didn't they have to help the mage eliminate the three?
No, the real moment wasn't that they hadn't acted more carefully with them. But honestly, how could they have imagined that they had brought a half-alive green demon with them, and that the mage's attack was just what he wanted to attract the attention of those around them.
And much less that this commotion would summon the shadow monster that had barely been reported?!
He felt cheated. It should have been a simple matter: let the commoners go ahead and clean up what was necessary and keep the spoils, nothing complicated or something he'd never done before.
Something easy, but it ended like this.
'Ahhhhh~ after this, maybe I should ask for a vacation to recover or something.'
Even in this state, he still thought he could get away without much trouble.
*Crunch*
Until he heard a noise very close to his head.
Widening his eyes, he found himself face to face with one of the green demons. A creature made with a pointy nose and ears that seemed even worse in the firelight and dim light from the sky.
But what truly terrified him was the short, somewhat rusty, blood-covered sword he carried.
"SOMEONE HEL–"
*Ploch*
And that was the last thing the knight saw before the tip of the sword was plunged into one of his eyes.