Chapter 9: From Arrival To Hunt - Part 2

"Should we play a game, everyone?" "You mean a word chain game?" Arezu replied, unable to think of any other games they could play in their current situation. Their party had been walking through the forest for half an hour without encountering anything noteworthy. Though they hadn't yet reached the suspected location of the goblins' nest, there were still no signs of goblins at all—or the other adventurers' party. So far, their hunt had yielded nothing. Perhaps she's finally getting bored. Arezu thought, watching the rest of his party walk ahead of him as he brought up the rear. "Nice idea, Mr. Arezu. But what I want to play is a guessing game." Guessing what, exactly? Seeing that she'd caught everyone's curiosity, Lynn continued explaining the game. "Each of us will make a guess about those strange goblins." Goblins were classified as low-level monsters. They typically grew to a meter tall—or even larger, depending on their evolution. Tenacious and adaptable, they could breed with nearly any kind of female creature to sustain their race and could eat virtually anything, including waste. With an incredibly fast growth rate—with only a week for an infant goblin to become an adult—they could multiply rapidly. Though goblins had just enough intelligence to learn to use weapon, and in rare cases, magic, their average strength was comparable to that of a child, making them little threat in one-on-one combat. "However, goblins rarely fight alone," Lynn said. "They're cunning enough to take advantage of their numbers. And their relentless breeding often produces evolved goblins, like hobgoblins, who become their leaders." Lynn's explanation reminded Arezu of their conversation during his night shift—the one about the curse of lust that allowed monsters to reproduce and evolve while suffering from insatiable desire. Still, Arezu couldn't figure out why Lynn called the goblins who attacked Mead Village strange. Pushing the thought aside, he refocused on his role as rearguard—only to find Lynn glancing back at him with a smirk. As if reading his mind, she answered his unspoken question. "It's because they abducted men instead of women, right, Mr. Guard?" The guard pondered for a moment, his brow furrowed in thought. Then, realization dawned. "You're right. All the missing villagers are men." Goblins were infamous for attacking villages to abduct women—using them for breeding, playthings, and eventually as food. For them to take only men was highly suspicious. "Now, everyone," Lynn said. "Think carefully and make your guesses. Whoever gets it right will receive a bigger share of the quest reward." Don't turn the fate of missing villagers into a betting game. That's what Arezu wanted to say, but Lynn quickly defended herself before anyone could object. "Make no mistake—I'm not taking this lightly. Everyone's insight might help us handle our enemy better." With that, everyone had no choice but to participate in the guessing—or rather, betting—game. It took a moment for the party to gather their thoughts before the answers began rolling in. "I guess the goblins are using the villagers as sacrifices for some kind of ritual," Hannah said first, her grim tone unexpected for a priestess. "My guess is that they're being offered as food to their boss," Alex answered confidently, proud of his own cleverness. "If not for sacrifice or food," Liz chimed in, "then maybe they're being used for labor of some kind." Her answer gave a sliver of hope to the guard, whose face had gone pale hearing the others. "And you, Mr. Arezu?" Lynn looked back, cheerfully skipping as though she'd forgotten why they were in the forest. "Maybe the goblins found a new way to torment or use the men—turning them into playthings," Arezu said reluctantly. He didn't want to worry the guard, but it was the only possibility he could think of that left the villagers alive. "Maybe they are suffering," he added, "but they're still alive. And we're going to save them, right?" His words brought the guard some relief—only for it to be dashed again by Lynn's reply. "I'm betting they're being used as lab rats. Maybe the goblins found a way to turn humans into goblins." "Oi..." Arezu began to protest Lynn's insensitivity, but something else caught his attention—a scent lingering in the air. "Everyone, stop," he said in a low voice. "What is it now?" Alex asked irritably, but drew his swords all the same, ready for whatever Arezu had sensed. The others did the same. "I smell blood up ahead." To confirm his suspicion, Lynn prepared one of her combat skills. She knelt down, touched the ground with her right hand, gathered mana, and activated a scouting skill. 'Search' As her mana rippled out in a wave, she detected a human presence twenty meters ahead. "Let's hurry. That person might be in danger." As Lynn predicted, they found a girl—an adventurer around their age—lying unconscious and barely alive. She had a deep wound on her back, and poison had already spread through her body. "Heal" "Cure" Hannah immediately went to work, healing the wound with one blessing and purging the poison with another. Though the girl's life was saved, she remained unconscious from blood loss. "Hey..." Lynn crouched beside the girl. Then, out of nowhere—slap!—she struck her across the face. "What the heck are you doing?!" Arezu yanked Lynn away. "Mr. Arezu, can't you see I'm sacrificing myself to do the dirty work? Want to slap her instead?" "There's no need to slap her at all! Just wake her up normally!" Perhaps their bickering was so loud it brought the girl back to consciousness. Her eyes fluttered open. "What happened? Where am I? Where are my minions?" "You should be the one answering our questions." Ignoring her strange choice of words, Lynn addressed the scout, who introduced herself as Gwen. Gwen explained that she was the leader of the adventurers' party sent to eliminate the goblins. Her group, accompanied by one village guard, had located the goblin nest. Although they were only copper-ranked, the quest should've been simple given their capabilities. But inside the cave, they encountered a strange evolved goblin leading the horde. Though their numbers weren't overwhelming at first, more goblins ambushed them from behind—bringing the village guard as a hostage. Gwen was injured trying to save him. Her companions stayed behind to hold the enemy off and urged her to escape. "Please... save my minions..." she whispered before losing consciousness again. "We'll take it from here. Please take her back to the village, Mr. Guard," Lynn said, her voice firm and serious. Arezu was surprised by her change in tone—but as soon as she caught him looking, her mischievous smile returned. "What about the missing—" "We'll find and rescue them, if they're still alive. At worst, we'll recover their belongings." She didn't need to say that last part, but no one objected. Without hesitation, and seemingly unworried about a possible ambush on the return path, the guard carried Gwen back to the village. "Now, follow my lead, my minions. We're going to strike right at the heart of the enemy!" I knew it. That Gwen is just like her. Arezu thought, as the party marched toward the goblins' nest.