Opening the Adventurer's Manual, Gauss realized it was his goblin-related title that had upgraded.
[You have slain 50 goblins. The title 'Goblin Hunter' has been upgraded to 'Goblin Slayer'.]
With the title upgrade, the perk effects had also changed significantly.
[Current Title Effects: Bane – +20% damage against goblins and related species.]
[Special Effect – Critical Strike: You have a chance to trigger a critical hit. When triggered, your attack's power will significantly increase. This effect has a short cooldown and cannot be re-triggered immediately.]
The upgrade boosted his Bane effect bonus from 10% to 20%.
Don't underestimate that extra 10%. Compared to flashy effects, raw bonus damage is one of the most direct and effective upgrades. Even at the previous 10%, he'd already dominated most goblin encounters.
At 20%, regular goblins would stand even less of a chance.
He even suspected that with his current swordsmanship and this bonus, he might be able to take on that mutated large goblin from his first mission in a fair fight.
What's more, the title upgrade added a critical hit effect—an occasional, powerful burst of damage that could decisively shift a battle.
Gauss looked over the updated panel and couldn't help feeling like he was truly becoming a goblin-killing specialist.
But he didn't consider that a bad thing.
The Adventurer's Manual required cumulative monster kills, and goblins were an excellent target species.
After all, goblins were numerous, breed rapidly, and were among the most common low-level monsters.
While most goblins were no longer a challenge to him, facing a large group could still be risky. Also, goblins sometimes evolved into elite variants with challenge ratings, so having a combat bonus against them was a strategic advantage.
He just didn't know how many goblins he'd need to kill for the title to upgrade again.
With that thought, Gauss returned his focus to the real world.
Scanning the area, he pulled out a dagger and began efficiently slicing off goblin ears for proof of kill. Then he searched the area for loot.
As expected, the goblins were dirt poor.
Aside from some crude wooden and stone tools, there were only a few tattered cloth scraps used for cover.
He'd figured as much—the weaker the goblin group, the more worthless their hoard.
Only goblins that could threaten humans or caravans had valuable stolen goods.
But deeper in the cave, Gauss stumbled upon a disturbing sight—a scrawny female mountain goat, tied up with rope and wooden stakes.
The goat was lying weakly on the ground, and her belly was swollen and distended. On closer inspection, he could see movement beneath her skin, like worms squirming.
She was pregnant.
Gauss had heard before that goblins could reproduce using the wombs of other animals, without any kind of reproductive barrier—but seeing it in person still shocked him.
Goblins were... far too biologically "free."
Staring down at the poor bleating goat, he made a decision.
"Slash!"
With one swift stroke, he cut both the rope binding her and her life.
Then, without hesitation, he ran his blade across her belly.
Her warm flesh parted, revealing a bloody mess of innards.
Inside were six small goblin fetuses, squirming like green rats. Gauss used the tip of his sword to pull them out one by one.
He lined them up and counted—six in total.
Not too many, not too few. It seemed that the mother's body size influenced the number of goblins born. Small animals only produced one or two, while larger hosts could produce a dozen or more.
The lack of nutrition also explained why the goblins in this area were all so small.
Like the kobold pups before, these goblin fetuses didn't count toward his monster kill tally—but he didn't care.
Eradicating them was necessary.
Even if it didn't solve the overall goblin infestation, it would at least ease the risk for nearby villages in the short term.
And it only took a moment of his time.
After checking the rest of the cave and confirming there were no survivors, he picked up his gear and left.
He left the goat's corpse behind.
Goblin flesh was toxic to humans and most animals. And a host that had carried goblin embryos was likely contaminated too.
Besides, after what he just saw, he wouldn't eat it even if he could.
He returned to the wheat fields where he'd previously killed four goblins, cut off their ears for proof, and dragged their bodies off the farmland to dump them in a nearby wasteland. Only then did he head back toward the village.
Greeting the guard stationed at the entrance, he passed through the earthen wall and wooden fencing.
Inside, the village was peaceful and lively.
Children played barefoot in the muddy road, their worn linen dresses swinging as they laughed and chased one another.
Cottages with fences had vibrant gardens filled with flowers and climbing vines.
Gauss paused and took it all in. Compared to villages farther south, this one felt richer, safer.
He felt something stir within him—memories from the original Gauss's homeland resurfaced.
But the tranquility was soon broken.
A girl, distracted while playing, crashed straight into him.
Gauss instinctively reached out to steady her.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine." She looked nervous at first, but after catching a glance at Gauss's gentle and handsome face, she relaxed a little. "Thank you."
"Be careful next time." Gauss smiled and helped her up.
Watching her shyly wave goodbye before running back to her friends, he couldn't help smiling himself.
At some point, his Charisma had increased from 5 to 6.
While higher Charisma did subtly improve appearance, it mostly enhanced personal magnetism and social rapport. It helped others instinctively trust him.
Looking around the serene village, Gauss decided not to rush. He would clear out the nearby goblins and spend some time here leveling up.
His goal was to reach 100 monster kills.
Besides, spell practice in real combat was highly efficient. This was a prime opportunity.
His skills stood as follows:
Level 0 Cantrip: Mage Hand Lv.3 (1/50)
Level 1 Spell: Magic Missile Lv.2 (15/20)
Level 1 Spell: Mage Armor Lv.2 (19/20)
Mage Hand had already reached Level 3.
Mage Armor was nearly at the next level—and lately, every time he cast it, he felt a strange warm current flow through his body.
Something was changing.