They entered the cave quickly, with the spearman leading the way while the gunslinger followed behind. The homemade torch was carried by the latter because the former's hands were occupied holding the spear.
Their speed was moderate despite their strategy to exterminate the goblins in a swift massacre; the reason for this was the veterans' tips about traps. Their five senses were working at over one hundred percent due to the fear of traps, which they were told was the worst part of dealing with the small green creatures.
"The path has been quiet so far; we haven't encountered any enemies," the black-haired boy holding the torch was the first to speak. The light jog wasn't draining his stamina, but the nervousness was; the excess of thoughts was tiring him out. For the first time, the burden of fighting for his own life and the lives of others felt excessive.
"Here's the first trap."
The initial challenge was sharp wooden spikes positioned to block invaders' advance. They planned to bypass it by using their superhuman physiques to jump over the traps.
"Damn, it's a double trap," Fay cursed.
Fay's landing was smooth as he leaped over the trap, but Jon's was not as graceful as his friend's. His right foot sank into a hidden hole in the ground, getting cut by some sort of sharp point.
"I think it's a triple trap," Jon muttered.
Four goblins were waiting for the invaders at that moment; one was armed with a dagger, another with a spear, and the other two with bows and arrows. Walker had no choice but to suppress the pain searing through his body to aim his weapon at his enemies. His focus was entirely on the archers with arrows pointed at the hunters. The group's melee fighter was targeting the green monsters' spearman, as he would be the first to strike if he got close; the dagger wielder wasn't a threat in the initial seconds.
The trigger was pulled faster than the arrow could be shot. The bullet couldn't be aimed perfectly at the head or another vital area with total precision due to the quick judgment he had to make after being injured. Luck was on his side when he saw blood gushing from his enemy's chest. Happiness couldn't take over his body as his instincts screamed in his head to move slightly. Hesitating to move was painful as he felt something pierce his right shoulder; his arm would have been almost useless if he hadn't made that minimal movement.
"The first real fight is terrifying," he thought.
The torch was dropped because of the arrow. The moment it fell, he didn't hesitate to shoot his smiling enemy, who was gloating over hitting the human. The shot was made coldly and technically. The smile didn't last long after the sound of the gunshot erupted from the firearm and pierced the goblin's head. Its eyes didn't even have time to close; it had no opportunity to process or even know it was going to die.
"Looks like I'm poisoned," Jon realized.
His gaze quickly shifted to his spear-wielding friend. The long white weapon thrust forward towards the green spearman, who could do little against the difference in technique and strength. The human showed his expertise with the pointed weapon the moment his thrust went through his opponent's head, sending blood flying everywhere, before executing a quick throw at the one with the dagger. The green monster with the dagger let out a final scream after feeling the spear tear through its insides; the two-handed weapon exploded its heart quickly and brutally.
"I'd be dead if Jon wasn't here with me. The idea of accompanying him was the best one I've had," Fay thought. The melee hunter quickly looked back and was surprised by his friend's condition: an arrow lodged in his shoulder and his foot stuck in the hole.
"Are we going to have to retreat?" The words came out as a reflex from the younger explorer with the spear, his concern for his companion evident.
"No. We would have to retreat if I hadn't asked for the antidote, but we got it, so we can proceed," Jon replied.
His companion quickly removed the arrow, and they inspected the hole to make sure there was nothing else inside before doing a quick check-up on their own conditions.
"I think my strategy of moving quickly was a failure. The rush to save lives put me at risk," Jon lamented.
"It wasn't a bad strategy. The problem is that our enemies were prepared for it," Fay reassured him.
Jon tore off a part of his shirt to staunch some of the bleeding from his leg after taking the antidote.
"Aren't you going to use the potion to heal your wounds?" Fay asked.
"I'll save it for later. We're still at the beginning of the fight. I feel like I might get hurt more, and I don't want to waste it when a more opportune moment might come," Jon explained.
"Understood."
They started running again, albeit even slower because of the injured leg. Their nervousness was reflected in the beads of sweat dripping from their bodies; their accelerated heartbeats were just another factor.
"Something's coming!" The shout came from the one holding the torch. He had a feeling that something heavy was approaching at high speed, and the impact could be lethal if it hit either of them.
"First Spear of Lugh..." Fay chanted.
The spear seemed to glow at that instant as the first form was used. The shaft was held tightly while the magical power of the light element was imbued into it. The heavy object coming at them was the trunk of a tree, thrown at high speed; the trap could have really killed them both in an instant if it had connected.
"Impressive," Jon breathed.
The polearm quickly split the trunk in two the second the blow was executed. The spearman's hands were trembling from the strain of executing such a powerful strike. "...Shining Thrust!" The blow was beautiful to watch, a weapon that transformed into a fierce light capable of splitting even a large wooden trunk thrown at high speed.
"Something's wro—" Blood fell to the ground as Fay realized what was wrong; there was blood on the floor even though he had hit nothing but the oncoming trunk. His instincts proved right: a goblin was on top of the trunk and had its leg cut by the first spear art, but it managed to react in time to grab a wooden club and throw it with force at the hunter's head.
"Fay!" Jon yelled.
His emotions might have been telling him to run to his friend's side or check on him, but his rational side won out. The Colt was quickly aimed at the fallen goblin, and he fired a precise shot into its head.
Fay got up after being knocked out for a few minutes. His head was bleeding considerably, and it seemed his combat strength had diminished. "I'm not using a potion now. I'm sure those monsters have worse traps ahead," he said.
The advance continued even more slowly as they panted from the stress they were under, ignoring their injuries to a certain extent so they could press on. The duo began walking cautiously until wooden arrows started flying at both hunters from two directions.
"There must be a secret entrance for them to get past us without us noticing," Jon guessed.
"We can't split up because of the torch in my hand," Jon stated.
"The projectiles would be too dangerous in the dark," Fay agreed. They both agreed not to separate to handle each side, fearing a secret signal would be sent and the other would be surrounded.
"Let's run!" Jon's signal was all they needed to start sprinting towards the enemy ahead, the determination in their eyes showing their fighting spirit was intact.
"Even this?" Fay grunted, quickly noticing his legs were bleeding from sharp objects made of wood, bones, and other materials.
"Forward!" Walker took the lead for the first time, ignoring the spikes, caltrops, and other types of traps damaging his feet. There was no hesitation in his steps despite the enormous pain throughout his body.
"I won't lose to you in determination," Fay forced a smile onto his face as he stepped on those traps with a clear mind. The spearman and the gunslinger weren't gritting their teeth from pain, but from rage. The arrows got closer and closer to the hunters, but their advance didn't stop, even as death drew nearer. Their pace seemed to magically quicken, their determination pushing them beyond their limits. Some of the wooden projectiles coming from both directions managed to hit them, but the two took care that they never struck a vital spot or affected their fighting ability. The first to be hit was the otherworlder gunslinger, right in the back of his thigh. The second arrow hit him as well, piercing his right shoulder and aggravating the previous wound. The third managed to hit the spearman, piercing his left foot. The only thing he could do was grit his teeth in pain as he continued forward.
The glimpse of the enemy was a beacon of hope for both of them. The gun was quickly aimed, and a direct shot was fired to stop the wooden projectiles at that moment. The caltrops hurting their legs also ended after the rain of arrows stopped. They let out a collective sigh, even though they were injured and needed treatment.
"That sigh was more than enough rest," Jon said.
"Aren't those guys going to give us a break? My spear will have its revenge here and now," Fay retorted.
Seven goblins were now visible. All seven held weapons, ready to fight. Their weapons varied from axes and swords to wooden clubs. Their physiques showed they were in the prime of their health, and only one of them had a shoulder wound from the bullet that had stopped the arrows. The two adventurers leaned on each other, blood dripping from their legs, arrows lodged in various parts of their bodies, and extreme physical and mental exhaustion weighing them down.
One of the axe-wielding goblins quickly threw its weapon towards the gunslinger, who reacted instantly with a bullet to its head. They were mutually wounded; the green-skinned one died, and the white-skinned one had his right hand disabled.
Two goblins with swords quickly leaped towards the injured spearman. His reaction, upon seeing this and looking at his own state, was to quickly throw his spear into the chest of one of them, hoping the shock would destabilize the other. "Got 'em," he grunted. The spear throw affected the advance of the other swordsman. The moment of hesitation wasn't wasted as the spearman leaped to grab his opponent's neck while immobilizing the hand holding the blade.
"You're not getting near him," Jon growled. A goblin with a wooden club and another with an axe were quickly closing in on the spearman. The interception came swiftly as he aimed with precision at each of their chests; the sound of gunshots signaled the moment they fell to the ground, the light of life gone.
The monsters' thoughts worked quickly as some of them picked up rocks from the ground. The throw was fast and powerful, hitting the unsuspecting hunters. The black-haired adventurer was hit in the head, while the brown-haired one was hit in the arms and chest. "Covering fire while the others approach," Jon deduced. The danger came when two more figures revealed themselves, one holding a sword, the other a wooden club. The one with the sharp blade managed to deliver a cut to the spear-wielding boy's stomach, though the cut wasn't deep. The creature armed with the wooden weapon jumped towards the gunslinger, who was down from the rock, and his chest was further injured by the thrown wooden weapon.
"Die," Jon snarled. The pain was ignored once more as the trigger was pulled. Exhaustion was overcome to make way for rage. The firearm hit the small monster's stomach region; another shot was fired, and its skull was pierced.
Fay wasn't far behind. He grabbed the sword of his fallen enemy and threw it at the monster that had managed to wound him. "Payback for cutting me," he yelled. The sword failed to hit the alert creature, but the monster's problem was that the adventurer grabbed his own spear to execute a swift and decisive blow. A quick, precise, and deadly thrust towards its stomach—the same place where the blade had hit—the blow contained a certain irony.
"That's how you tear someone's intestines out," Fay said grimly.
The gazes of the two quickly turned towards the remaining creatures. They were trembling from the brutality and strength of the human duo that had invaded their nest.
"Goodbye," Jon said.
"See you never," Fay added.
Both of them used their last ounces of strength to deliver a final, decisive blow. The Colt was aimed with impressive speed, and the spear wasted no time either. The moment the gun fired was the same moment the creatures' heads were exploded by the two weapons.
"Let's take the potion. I can't take any more," Jon gasped.
"Me neither," Fay agreed.
The first to collapse was the one who spoke, the transmigrator from another world who had been the most wounded in this deadly battle between monsters and humans.
"I'm almost certain we could have died," Fay said.
"I'm glad I accepted your invitation. My death was certain if I had been alone," Fay admitted.
"I'm also happy to have teamed up with you. I don't think I would have survived alone," Jon replied.
The two took some time to advance while they waited for the potion to take effect and regenerate their wounds. The recovery time was spent with the kind of useless conversations that only friends would have.
It didn't take long for the recovery to take effect, and they went to look for the children, being careful in case another goblin was behind or in front of them.
"Do you think these kids have already been eaten?" Jon wondered aloud.
"I hope not. You shouldn't say things like that at all," the spearman reprimanded him, to which the gunslinger just smiled. The whereabouts of the children were easy to find after a while; their cries guided them.
"Found them," Jon announced.
"It seems my words to Mary weren't an empty promise. We did it!" Fay exclaimed.
The surprise was the number of women mixed in with the children; the little green monsters hadn't just taken the little ones.
"These abominations wanted to use them as breeders," Jon said with disgust.
"Good thing my spear and your gun finished them off," Fay said.
"But I never want to face goblins again," Jon declared.
"Me neither," Fay agreed.
The system screen lit up when it registered the 6 children as safe despite their injuries, which were not fatal.
Mission Complete!
Which status do you wish to raise by a small amount?
Strength: F- (Up)
Dexterity: D-(Up)
Magic: F+ (Up)
Agility: F+ (Up)
Wisdom: F (Up)