A bright yellow light glowed behind the goblins. Then, a flurry of yellow swords flew towards the door. It struck down several of the goblins, but those closer to the door were shielded by their dead comrades.
Within the goblins, there was one of them that held a stick. Dodak watched as it waved the staff and conjured fireballs, sending them straight at the source of the yellow glow. It barked out several shouts and most of the surviving goblins turned and charged towards the yellow light.
However, the sword flurry had broken the lock to the door. Two goblins stepped into the room and charged at the duo.
One of the goblins slashed and swiped at Dodak, who hid behind the toilet lid. Its attacks were swift and unorganised, making him unable to predict its next attack. As Dodak backed up further, he realised he was getting cornered.
Jisung was doing slightly better, managing to parry the goblin's attacks and even get in a few swipes. They were evenly matched.
When Dodak turned to look at how much space he had left, the goblin took the opportunity to charge and tackle him. They fell to the floor as the toilet lid fell out of Dodak's hand. The goblin raised its dagger and was about to impale downwards when Dodak caught its hand.
The goblin smirked as it pushed the dagger down against Dodak's hands. With the goblin being on top and Dodak being in an awkward position, the knife was now inches away from his face.
His hands quivered as he used all his strength to hold back the dagger. If he gave out now, the dagger would end up in his eye socket. He really did not want that.
"Jisung, a little help please!"
Jisung, who was across the room, was still battling with the goblin. Seeing his friend about to be blinded, he gathered all his strength and threw his dagger at the goblin. The dagger flew and impaled the side of its chest, causing it to shriek in pain. Dodak felt a sense of relief wash over him when he saw the black liquid oozing out of it, but that relief was short-lived.
The goblin, enraged by its pain, pushed down even harder. Dodak's hands were trembling and burning from the exertion. He knew he could not hold on much longer. As the dagger inched forward, he knew he had to give it one final push. It was all or nothing.
He gathered all his strength and pushed against the goblin, screaming with all his might. The dagger barely moved backwards and Dodak was tired, but he continued pushing. He had used all his energy, but he was unsuccessful at pushing the goblin's advance back. It was all for naught.
Just when he thought that it was over for him, a green mist started flowing out of his mouth. It swirled as it floated upwards, travelling into the goblin's airways and mouth.
Within seconds, the devious smirk on its face changed. Its crazed eyes were replaced with panic as it struggled to breathe. It throatily gasped for air as foam started spewing out from its mouth. Its grip on the dagger weakened as its jet-black blood leaked from its eyes. Soon, the white foam flowed like a tap from its nostrils, dripping onto Dodak as it released the dagger.
Dodak pushed it away and scrambled away from it. The goblin was now on its fours, evidently trying its best to breathe. Before long, it collapsed onto the floor, a pool of black and white forming around it.
He fell to the floor in relief and shock, the adrenaline making his head hazy. Had he not miraculously summoned the green mist that had slain the goblin, he would have been the one lying in a pool of his own blood. Luck was on his side.
Staring at the dead goblin, he observed that its face had become a pale green due to the lack of oxygen. The body's face was mangled with fear and its eyes were wide open, the dying moments etched into its face.
The crisp sound of slashing was what made him snap out of his thoughts. Jisung, now without a dagger, was struggling to fight back. He could only dodge and roll as the goblin swiped and pounced on him.
Dodak picked up the daggers beside the body and ran as fast as he could towards his friend. The aforementioned ran towards the back facing goblin and striked, impaling one of the daggers into the back of its head. The second dagger was stabbed into its neck, bursting its artery.
He pulled the daggers out of the goblin as it fell to the floor. The blood spurted everywhere onto his face, coating him in a layer of black.
"Thanks man. You saved me."
"I should be the one saying that. If you didn't throw your dagger at the goblin, you wouldn't have been defenceless."
Jisung smiled as he bent down to pick up the dagger from the freshest body.
BOOM
The explosion came from outside, directing them out of the room. As they scrambled out of the room, they witnessed the goblin with a staff fighting a woman who was presumably the source of the yellow glow.
The mage had summoned more fireballs, directing them into the sky and letting them fall like meteors. The woman materialised energy in the shape of a longsword and charged forward, skillfully manoeuvring between the incoming fireballs with grace. She leaped and slid past the explosions and steadied her energy blade.
The mage shot forth more fireballs, but with a slash from her blade, the fireball was dissolved. Smoke erupted and covered the entire battlefield, clouding them from each other.
The area went silent until the yellow glow reappeared beside the goblin mage. With one clean strike, the head of the goblin mage fell to the floor. The body became limp and followed suit, crashing to the floor. She let go of the energy sword and it dissipated into the air.
Now that Dodak could get a good look at her, he realised who she was. Her poised stance exuded an aura of confidence, and her ballet suit was perfectly form-fitting. She tilted her head at just the right angle so that her jawline was flawless, allowing her silky, blonde hair to fall naturally onto her sharp shoulders while her sultry, siren eyes stared confidently at you. The girl was the embodiment of poise and confidence, the one and only Song Jiwoo. Somehow through the day's events, she had managed to retain her ballet suit's cleanliness and quality.
"Thank you so much, Song Jiwoo. You saved our lives."
Jisung bowed towards her, his head perpendicular to his body to emphasise his gratitude.
"You know me?"
"I would be living under a rock if I didn't know you."
"Thank you. But in this situation, what we were before means nothing now."
She shrugged, her voice smooth as if commenting on the weather. Her fingers unfurled from the ball, releasing it with a quiet sigh, and for the briefest moment, her shoulders sank, just enough that Dodak wondered if he had imagined it.
"Follow me, a group of students have gathered at the library and locked it up quite securely. You'll be safer there instead of here."
She then turned for the exit, her hair swishing perfectly in the air and landing back on her shoulders. Taking the lead, she walked ahead as the bright, yellow glow around her faded into the darkness of the setting sun.
~~~
The route to the library was peaceful. Against the pitch-black night sky, Dodak could see the stars that shined so brightly.
As they walked silently, Dodak could not help but let his thoughts wander. He felt inconsequential standing next to the other two. The renowned star of Seoul University, the next big dancer of Korea, Song Jiwoo. The chairman of the archery club, with a face many would die for and a cache of wealth so deep it could fill the world's oceans, Han Jisung. Then there was Dodak, a normal guy.
Realising that he was starting to fall back into his old ways, he slapped himself on the cheek.
"You alright Dodak?"
"Yep. I'm fine."
Jisung continued to stay by his side, walking quietly as he pouted, tapping his fingers against his legs.
"I can't read your mind Jisung."
Jisung looked at him with his puppy eyes and continued pouting.
"Spill already."
"I said some harsh words to you today. I hope you know I didn't mean them."
"You said nothing but the truth. The woman wouldn't have died if I opened the door."
Jisung patted Dodak's back and grabbed his shoulder.
"Hey, you did nothing wrong. You did what was best for both of us. I realise now that we were lucky back there. If it was an adult goblin, we might not have survived."
Jisung flashed a comforting grin towards Dodak as he squeezed his shoulder.
"I hope you won't let that guilt get to you."
"I know."
Dodak smiled back at Jisung, grateful for the other's encouragement.
"Thank you, Jisung."