The chief looked at the bonfire, then at Kyne, and a malicious gleam appeared in his red eyes. He gave orders.
Four larger goblins advanced, grabbing Kyne, who did not resist, only watched with curiosity, and carried him toward the flames.
"Ah," Kyne murmured.
"Fire. This will be interesting."
They did not throw him in all at once. First, they held him close to the flames, testing his reaction. Kyne did not scream. He did not writhe. He only smiled.
Encouraged, or more terrified, by the lack of reaction, they threw him into the center of the bonfire.
The flames enveloped him. The goblins stepped back, expecting screams, the smell of burning flesh, and the macabre dance of a creature dying in agony.
Nothing happened.
Kyne stood in the middle of the flames, the tongues of fire licking his naked body but leaving no marks. His skin did not even turn red. He looked at his hands, then at the goblins around him, and smiled.
"Rank D- fire resistance," he explained, knowing they would not understand.
"Common fire doesn't affect me anymore."
The goblins, already frightened, became completely terrified. Some fell to their knees, beginning to make gestures that seemed to be worship or appeasement. Others fled completely, disappearing into the night forest.
But the chief… the chief had not given up yet.
With a roar of impotent fury, he grabbed a spear and charged toward the bonfire, determined to kill the supernatural creature even if he had to enter the flames himself.
Kyne watched him approach and then thought of something.
Since he had unlocked Fire Manipulation, he had only used it once, to throw a fireball at a tree. And that had left him completely exhausted, without mana.
He was now surrounded by fire. And he felt that faint connection with the flames around him.
When the goblin chief was five meters from the bonfire, Kyne extended his hand.
It was not a dramatic gesture. It was almost casual. But in his mind, he focused on the connection with the fire, on the mana he felt flowing weakly in his body, and on the intention to gather, concentrate, and release.
The mana in his body stirred, flowing into his outstretched hand. The flames around him responded, pieces of fire detaching from the main bonfire, converging in his open palm.
In seconds, a fireball formed, not as perfect as the first time, he was using less mana, a little unstable, but a real fireball, which spun gently over his hand without burning him.
The remaining goblins stopped, their eyes wide. Even the chief hesitated, his spear lowering slightly.
Kyne aimed at the nearest goblin, not the chief, but one of the warriors who still remained, holding a spear with trembling hands.
With a thought, the fireball flew.
It moved more slowly than Kyne expected, not a lightning bolt, but a visible projectile, an orange sphere that left a trail of heat in the night air.
The target goblin tried to dodge but was far too slow. The fireball struck him in the face with a dull sound.
It was not the dramatic explosion Kyne had imagined. It was more like… a flammable liquid being thrown on someone and then ignited. The fire spread across the goblin's face and shoulders, and he let out a sharp scream of pain and terror.
He fell to the ground, desperate, beating his hands against his own face to extinguish the flames that did not go out easily. Other goblins ran to help him, throwing dirt and water from a nearby bucket onto him.
In thirty seconds, the fire was extinguished. The goblin lay on the ground, moaning, his face and neck burned, but… alive. Clearly injured, in pain, but alive.
Kyne watched, his expression slightly disappointed.
"Tsk. Damn," he murmured, stepping out of the bonfire.
"Their rank is much higher than mine. At least I tested it. Besides, I have little mana…"
His fireball, even with his Fire Affinity at E- and Fire Manipulation at D, was not strong enough to kill a goblin warrior with a single strike.
And the effort left him slightly dizzy, not exhausted like the first time, but tired, as if he had run a short distance.
He looked around. The camp was in chaos. Half of the goblins had fled. The injured one was still moaning on the ground. The chief… the chief was standing ten meters away, looking at Kyne with an expression that was no longer anger nor determination.
It was acceptance.
The goblin chief threw his spear to the ground. He emitted a sound, not a growl of anger, but something softer, almost respectful. He made a gesture with his hand, pointing at Kyne, then at the forest, then made a "go away" motion.
Kyne understood. Not through words, but through context. The chief was giving up.
Acknowledging that he could not win. Offering a truce. You leave, we stay here, and nobody hurts anyone.
For a moment, Kyne considered it. He could stay, continue dying to them, increasing his resistance. But it was already becoming repetitive. And the system seemed to be giving less progress with each death.
Besides, there was something more interesting now. He had a new idea.
Kyne nodded to the chief, a gesture of respect between adversaries. Then he turned and began to walk out of the camp, toward the river.
The goblins did not try to stop him. They only watched, in silence, as the immortal creature they had tried to kill twelve times simply walked away, disappearing into the darkness of the forest.
When Kyne was fifty meters from the camp, far enough not to be seen, he stopped. He looked at his hands, then toward the direction he had come from.
"Goblins," he murmured.
"Rank D+ for the chief, E- for the warriors. Interesting."
"I'll come back when I figure out how to increase my rank…"
But for now, his mind was already working on the next experiment. If goblins existed, what else existed? Orcs? Trolls? Elves? Humans?
Kyne smiled, his silver eyes gleaming in the darkness.
The world was full of dangers.
And he was full of curiosity.
It was a perfect combination.