(Minor Edits)
As I made my way silently through the forest, I came across a small group hobgoblins stalking some sort of humanoid dog looking monsters. According to Saul's analysis, they were called Kobolds, and they even had a kobold mage among them. Mages were a bit uncommon, but nothing too rare apparently.
I'm still excited, though, since I get to see a battle between monsters of the forest, and I can even get a free meal out of it.
The kobolds were attacking a pitiful little green slime, which slightly irked me for some reason, but I quickly restrained myself from acting as I watched the hobgoblins prepare to attack from my vantage point in the tree.
The dark-skinned hobgoblin with the estoc seemed to be the strongest. He would make a nice meal for my relatively empty stomach. Saul wasn't able to determine much other than that he was a variant hobgoblin blessed by some sort of diety. Just the cherry on top that I was looking for.
The hobgoblins seemed somewhat experienced since they quickly took down the kobolds. The variant-hobgoblin immediately took down the kobold mage, piercing it through the chest with his estoc. Now that I'm looking closer, I think he might've poisoned it too.
The other hobgoblins also quickly acted. The hobgoblina of the group shot a kobold through the eye before it could attack the variant hobgoblin while the burly hobgoblin tackled the last kobold and started pounding it into mush with his trunk-like mace. There was one more goblina in the group, but she was only able to launch one rock with her sling before the fight was over.
It was impressive teamwork, but unfortunately, I was coming as the bearer of bad news. The hard-earned goods would be mine, but I might let them live if they can direct me towards some humans. All of them except the variant, he would become my snack, one way or another.
As the goblins were about to start breaking down their spoils, I quickly used [Flash Step] to move in front of the hobgoblins. Before they could even process what was going on, I released my spiritual power and paralyzed the goblins with my reiryouku.
Surprisingly, the variant hobgoblin was still able to move some as he threw his estoc covered in poison towards me with all the strength he could summon. Still, with my hastened thoughts skill, I was easily able to watch it pass by me as I dodged it.
"That's not very nice, hobgoblin-kun. I was just coming by to have some dinner, and yet you attacked me for no reason at all." Now, this might not make for a legitimate claim to self-defense, but theres also nobody here who cares. Except maybe the hobgoblin.
I summoned a water blade and launched it towards the variants legs. Who knows if this guy has some sort of escape skill. Given what the system just told me, I woudn't be surprised.
The water blade passed through all three of the hobgoblin's legs, just below his hips. Considering that I was aiming for his knees, I still have some work to do with my aim.
I took no pleasure in tormenting this poor fellow, but he had to go. The least I could do was make it end quicker. Before the variant could fall to the ground, I used [Flash Step] to appear behind him. I grabbed his head with both hands and gave it a slight twist.
Unfortunately, I still didn't have a complete grasp on my strength and twisted his head completely backwards with a sickening crunch.
While the others were still paralyzed, the skin on the back of my hands turned a translucent black just like my slime form as they quickly dissolved and absorbed the variant hobgoblin. I closed my eyes and did the same with his legs just in case.
Various notifications went off in my mind, but I ignored them for a moment while I focused on the weary and fearful hobgoblins before me. The analysis took a moment, but after it was finished I had gained the variant goblin's innate and unique skills.
I completely returned to my slime form before using the data on the variant to transform into an almost exact replica of the variant hobgoblin. From it's skills, [Goblin-Language] was the most useful addition at the moment.
It seems like even if I tried to peacefully communicate with them earlier, they wouldn't have understood.
My eyes were closed as I adjusted to this new form. The transition wasn't as smooth as my human form transformation, and it felt a bit unnatural compared to my human and slime forms. I guess that's the difference from a system prepared body.
As I opened my eyes and looked at the other hobgoblins, I saw them plastered in place due to the massive amount of mana and spiritual pressure I had released earlier.
Fortunately, my stealth gear had a size adjusting function, but my omitsukido outfit looked even stranger on the hobgoblin me than it did on the human me. I really needed to find some more comfortable clothes.
I quickly reigned in my mana, but there wasn't much I could do about my spiritual pressure. Thankfully my spiritual energy was still weak despite the boost it received from devouring the variant. It had only gone up about 20 points, keeping my SPR parameter at H-rank. Otherwise, I might've broken these guys with my current level of control.
After properly restraining my terrifying mana, I faked a cough to wake them from their stupor. "*Cough, cough* Are you still there?" I questioned while snapping my fingers in front of them.
"Ahh! Wh-who who or w-what are you?" Stammered the young hobgoblin with the bow.
I laughed slightly as I checked on the other hobgoblin and goblina. "My name is Orion. I am, believe it or not, a friendly neighborhood slime. I was just looking for something to eat when I ran into you guys. You wouldn't happen to be able to help me, would you?"
The hobgoblin male gulped as he looked at where his companion once stood and considered how powerful I must have been that this was the result of me "running into them." He clenched his fists as he gripped his mace even harder and prepared for a brutal fight.
Noticing this, the goblina grabbed one of his arms while the other hobgoblin shakily stepped forward between us. "S-s-sir Orion, please forgive hobu-Kichi. Hobu-Rou was a close friend of ours and like a leader for our group..."
"No problem, I understand it's hard losing those close to you," I said while looking towards the slime core still on the ground. "Now, I know we got off on the wrong foot, but I was hoping you could help me find something."
Hobu-Kichi seemed ready to ask a stupid question, but I quickly released a portion of my mana for a moment before turning toward the more intelligent hobgoblin. "You're quite the smart little goblina. Do you have a name?"
"No sir, we are not named creatures. Hobu-Rou simply gave us simple names to make it easier to coordinate with one another. I was called hobu-Mi, the one you d-defeated was hobu-Rou while hobu-Kichi is the one with the shield and gobu-E is the one with the sling." she said, while bowing her head. She was hiding her face, but with my domain-like magic perception, I could easily see the tears forming in her eyes.
It was unfortunate that they lost their friend, but recalling the quest the system gave me the moment I engaged the variant, I would still do the same if given another chance.
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Hidden Quest:
Eliminate Fate Twisting Protagonists (1/?)
You have activated the hidden quest by stumbling upon a protagonist. Protagonists twist the fate of the records, and when multiple protagonists collide, it can destroy the record and weakens the multiverse as a whole.
Eliminate these individuals with extreme prejudice to maintain the safety and equilibrium of the record and receive rewards from the system. Penalties for not completing this repeatable quest are unknown but are often dire due to the fate twisting properties of protagonists.
Reward: ???
Penalty: ???
/-------------------------------------\
Why was it so easy to stumble upon a protagonist and defeat them? Maybe this hobu-Rou was also just born and wasn't as over powered as me. Or maybe he just didn't know how to use his OP protagonist powers to their fullest...
\-------------------------------------/
Hidden Quest Complete:
Eliminate the Fate Twisting Protagonist (2/?)
You have devoured the protagonist, hobgoblin Rou, a variant hobgoblin reincarnator with the blessings of the entity of [Origin and Demise]. Absorbing blessings... Orion has become the new [▮▮▮▮] of Origin and Demise.
Reward: Blessings of [Origin and Demise], [Devourer] upgraded to [Celestial Devourer], racial evolutions expanded upon level up.
/-------------------------------------\
"Look, hobu-Mi, right?" Seeing the timid Hobgoblin nod I continued, "I'm sorry about what's happened here, but I also need your help, and I am more than willing to compensate you should you succeed.
I am lost and looking for some directions towards an human settlement. Do you think you can lead me to them? If so, I don't mind giving you and your companions proper names."
Not only hobu-Mi, but hobu-Kichi and gobu-E also stood there with their eyes widened. As surface monsters, they understood that being given a name by a powerful individual could drastically increase their strength and odds of survival. I left them alone to discuss it as I absorbed and analyzed the corpses and equipment of the kobolds.
At the same time, I went over the other notifications I got from devouring the variant. I had already gained the [Goblin-Language], so the [Kobold-Language] skill I received came as no surprise.
I hadn't thought about it before since telepathy automatically translates the intents behind one's thoughts, making the language meaningless. Still, now that I'm physically communicating with people, I need to be able to understand and communicate with them through speaking and writing.
Other than the language skills, I got a few new skills such as [Venom], [Thermal Vision], [Poison Resistance], [Libido], [Virility], and [Appraisal] among others.
I couldn't help but wonder about the [Libido] and [Virility] skills and whether or not they could help me to have children after I've become a True Demon Lord. I may not yet be a suitable parent, but I fully hope to take Allen's advice and build my self a big family.
I quickly stowed the weapons of the kobolds and the variant in my stomach storage while waiting on the goblins. While waiting, Saul was analyzying everything I had gained.
『Fire Spirit Stone Detected. Would you like to absorb? [Y/N]』
'Go ahead, Saul' I mentally nodded.
『Skill [Pyrokinesis] aquired.』the world's voice alerted me. It was a bit surprising but having a fire skill to match my water skills seemed quite fitting.
The goblins had stepped away to discuss their options for a bit, and though they wished to get revenge for their variant kin, they understood that they were no match for me. Thus they made a decision. The goblins all came a kneeled before as hobu-Mi started to speak.
"S-sire. We were only just born and don't know the location of any human settlements..." she paused, waiting to see my reaction.
I simply nodded and sighed in disappointment.
"We don't know of their location, we know some people that might," hobu-Kichi added.
"Hmm?" I raised a brow as if asking them to continue.
"What hobu-Kichi said is true. T-there are women in our camp that were captured f-for breeding. They might know. If not, there is the goblin elder or the hobgoblin party due back any day now that should be bringing fresh, untainted humans. They were supposedly our parents so they should know where they are getting their humans from..." hobu-Mi seemed quire nervous as she further explained.
"Hmm." I frowned, hearing about the humans being used as breeding stock for the goblins, but I wasn't too surprised either. It frequently happened in these stories, especially the darker ones. "Take me to these women, and I shall reward you. There may be more opportunities for cooperation in the future if you do well."
Now that I had access to the goblin-language skill, I could speak with them in any form, but I decided to remain in my new hobgoblin form until we met the women.
It took an hour to return to the camp where a few dozen goblins were running about. Right as we arrived, I could see an elderly goblin entering a cave that stunk of death with an excited look on his face. Before he could start with whatever it was he was planning, I used [Flash Step] to arrive behind him and chop his neck. The elder goblin fell to the ground before a group scantily clad women stained by the spunk of goblins and the stench of defacation.
They were clad in rope and chains to prevent them from escaping. Judging by the looks in their eyes, though, they had long given up hope after being repeatedly defiled by the monsters.
I quickly shifted into my human form. With the suppression and stealth effects, no one noticed me except the three who had just entered and were checking on the elder goblin.
They were the three hobgoblins that led me here, and they wisely kept silent near the entrance of the cave, not allowing anyone else to enter.
There were six reasonably young women, all appearing between their late teens and early thirties. They all looked malnourished, and their eyes were empty—devoid of any life.
The youngest of the group looked like she was 18 or 19. I wasn't sure about the gestation cycles of goblins, but judging by the bloodstains on her thighs and the slight bump on her stomach, it seemed that she was impregnated not too long ago.
When I released her bonds, her eyes remained dull and far off. Whatever she had gone through, her mind was no longer with us, and the other women were much the same.
To be honest, this was more than I expected. I knew entering a fantasy world changed things, but it was different reading about this sort of thing and experiencing it with your own five-senses. Seeing it, smelling it, and listening to the despair in their wheezes broke something in me, and my picture of what a fantasy isekai world was like.
No, I wasn't going to become a hero for justice or some psycho monster, but I had become somewhat jaded. My perception of fantasy worlds was slightly tarnished. It was then that I truly came to understand that only with power can you protect yourself and the people, places, and things you care about.
Only with power could you choose your own fate and twist it to your will like a protagonist.