By the time the pioneers came to their senses, they found themselves in a dense forest. Surrounding them were soldiers clad in white exoskeleton armor, and the area within a hundred meters had been enclosed by specially designed barbed wire fences.
"Please present your identification," said Guard 001.
"Send identification and mission details," Pioneer 001 commanded into his helmet.
[Transmission Successful]
After confirming the information, Guard 001 stepped aside and pointed in a direction. "The exit is that way."
"Thank you."
As the pioneers exited the camp, they followed the direction indicated by their helmets and began to move quickly.
With the assistance of their mechanical exoskeletons, the pioneers darted through the forest like cheetahs.
Unknown Town, Adventurers' Guild.
"Please help us! Goblins are attacking the village! If this continues, they'll kill all our cattle and burn our fields!" pleaded a short farmer dressed in coarse linen.
"Please provide the necessary documents and payment for the extermination request," said a blonde girl in a uniform, smiling.
"Ah, right." The farmer placed his pouch of coins and a piece of brown parchment on the table. "Everything is here."
"The documents are in order. Let me confirm the payment." She emptied the pouch onto the table.
"Everything checks out. Adventurers will be dispatched within a few days."
"Is it true that goblins abduct women, assault them, and then eat them?" the farmer asked anxiously.
"Indeed, that has been reported."
Once the farmer left, the blonde girl's expression fell, and she slumped over the table.
"Ugh!"
"Another goblin extermination? This is the third time already," her colleague remarked.
"What's the reward?"
Anabella made a gesture indicating it was a meager amount.
"Then no experienced adventurers will take it; only rookies will."
"No, there's one who will go."
As the task notices were distributed, the guild began to buzz with activity. Every adventurer gathered around the bulletin board, considering which jobs to take.
At that moment, a man clad in peculiar armor entered, and the guild fell silent, all eyes fixated on him.
"The Goblin Slayer!"
"That's him!"
"He's the weirdo who only accepts goblin contracts, right?"
"Hmph, he's silver rank like us?" scoffed a blonde knight in white armor. "Who knows if he can even handle larger monsters. The rank checks are getting too lenient."
"Don't mind him; he's not our concern."
"Look! I've never seen such dirty gear before," a rookie adventurer said to his companion.
The Goblin Slayer's armor was covered in small scratches, and many areas were stained with blood that wouldn't wash out.
"Stop talking! He's probably a rookie adventurer like us. If he hears us, it won't be good."
Time flew by, and once all the adventurers had taken their tasks, the Goblin Slayer finished his conversation with a priestess and approached the front desk.
"Do you have any goblin contracts?"
Nightfall, in the Silent Forest.
Shadows darted through the trees like phantoms.
The past half-day had completely reshaped their worldview, from the portal to the various fantastical creatures here.
"Stop!" Pioneer 001 shouted.
The other pioneers halted and looked at him.
"Nine o'clock, suspected camp ahead."
The pioneers turned to look in that direction, using their helmets' thermal imaging to spot a group of colorful figures.
"They're too small; they might not be human. Assault soldiers, come with me to investigate. Snipers, find positions to provide support. Logistics soldiers, stay back and be ready."
Following the orders, the pioneers quickly dispersed, with 001 leading the remaining nine assault soldiers toward the suspected camp.
As they approached, 001 saw a stone structure nestled within a massive tree, inhabited by small, green-skinned humanoid creatures.
"Ahhhhhh!"
The goblin on lookout duty spotted the pioneers and began to scream.
"What is this?" 001 activated the tactical helmet to zoom in on the entrance, revealing a human bound to a pyre, already charred, and a naked woman lying on the ground, unconscious. Seeing this scene, 001 realized that these green-skinned creatures were clearly hostile toward humans and could not be reasoned with.
"Open fire! Quickly rescue the humans inside!"
Seeing the humans inside indicated that they had already completed half of their mission; the remaining task was to find civilization.
Rat-a-tat-tat!
The goblins, who had been screaming just moments before, were instantly torn apart by bullets, and the seven or eight goblins who emerged with weapons to investigate also fell, their bodies left in tatters.
After dealing with the goblins at the entrance, the pioneers rushed into the building, knowing that saving the woman inside was crucial to finding civilization.
As 001 stepped through the doorway, a goblin suddenly leaped down from above, its short sword aimed at 001's neck.
Bang! Bang!
Anticipating the attack, 001 raised his weapon and fired two shots, blowing the goblin's head off. They had already mapped out the positions of all the green-skinned creatures inside using thermal imaging.
Rat-a-tat-tat!
The pioneers formed a semicircle at the entrance, raising their rifles to shoot down every goblin in sight.
At first, the goblins charged at the pioneers fearlessly, but as their comrades fell one by one, fear began to rise within them.
The goblins, who had been burning and pillaging humans, were now being slaughtered like livestock. They screamed in terror and fled, but where could they escape to?
The only exit was blocked by the pioneer squad, and death awaited them! Gradually, some goblins began to kneel and beg for mercy, but what they received was not forgiveness, but bullets that tore through their bodies. They would pay for the crimes they had committed!
Bang!
With the final gunshot, all the goblins were reduced to nothing but pulp.
Looking at the scene inside—the naked woman, the scattered human bones, and the charred corpses—they could imagine what horrors had transpired here.
"Captain, she's dead," reported 006 after checking the woman's condition.
The others shook their heads in disappointment; the lead they had worked so hard to find had vanished.
"Captain, there are two humans approaching outside," reported Sniper 011 through the comms.
Outside, the Goblin Slayer and the priestess approached the mountain town and saw the ground littered with goblin corpses.
"Goblin Slayer, what happened here?" the priestess asked.
"I don't know; they might have been killed by some monster. Get ready for your miracle; there may still be goblins inside," the Goblin Slayer said, planning to check for any surviving goblins to eliminate.
"Here they come."
The Goblin Slayer saw ten figures clad in strange black armor emerge from the building.
"Who are you?"
Unfortunately, the Goblin Slayer's words fell on deaf ears.
"015, bring that out," 001 commanded.
Fortunately, Eastern Xia had anticipated such a situation and prepared an explanatory animation.
016 stepped out from the forest, holding a tablet.
The Goblin Slayer and the priestess eyed the larger armored figure with increased caution.
016 approached slowly, pointing to the tablet in his hand, indicating for them to look.
"Goblin Slayer, do you think they can't speak?" the priestess asked, watching the little figures on the screen mimicking the same gestures.
"Seems likely."
As the animation played, the Goblin Slayer and the priestess began to understand their intentions.
These armored figures couldn't speak, or rather, they couldn't communicate in the common tongue; they wanted to go to the town and hoped they could guide them.
"Goblin Slayer, what should we do? Should we take them to the town?" the priestess asked nervously, fearing they might pose a threat.
"Take them," the Goblin Slayer replied without hesitation.
"Wait, why?"
The Goblin Slayer pointed to the scattered bodies at the entrance and said, "Because we can't fight them, and they can follow us wherever we go, unless we never return to the town."
Turning to 016, he nodded and said, "We can take you to the town, but we need to rest for a bit first."
After saying that, regardless of whether they understood or not, he simply found a tree to sit under.
"Captain, they should have agreed, but judging by the situation, they probably need to rest for a while," 016 said over the channel.
"Alright, everyone gather up and rest for a moment, replenish your energy, and the logistics troops should replace the energy sources for all the exoskeleton armor."
The pioneers began to gather and rest. The priestess girl saw them take off their helmets and, upon seeing their faces, couldn't help but sigh in relief.
At least they were human.
Half an hour later, the Goblin Slayer ended the break and stood up, saying to everyone, "The break is over. Let's go."
The two Goblin Slayers headed toward the town, with the Pioneers following closely behind.