Chapter 82: Goblin
The city below was silent—too silent.
Stone chimneys leaned like broken spines, windows were cracked open like hollow eyes, and the streets crawled with the shuffle of decaying feet.
Raven stood on the seven-meter wall, spear resting against his shoulder, eyes narrowing at the slow tide of undead spilling through the avenues. Every motion was sluggish, yet deliberate, as if something unseen was guiding them.
Selene's gaze snapped toward the dark treeline a kilometer away. The wind carried the faint stench of rot and metal.
"They're moving with purpose," she said, her brows tightening. "Are they aware of us? How can they find us when they behave like beasts?"
"No idea," Raven replied, voice low. "But this city's a graveyard now. Let's check the outskirts—see if anyone survived."
He stepped to the edge and jumped. The fall ended in a solid thud as his boots struck dirt.
A flicker of light danced beside him—Selene appeared on the ground before he landed, dust curling around her feet.
Raven raised an eyebrow. "Teleportation?"
She smiled faintly. "An inferior [Blink], My Lord. Ten meters, no more."
"Useful enough." His tone carried faint amusement.
Selene turned to the narrow dirt road cutting through the outskirts. "Shall we follow the path?"
"Lead the way."
They walked through the empty outskirts, their footsteps echoing faintly. The air felt heavy, as if the whole world was holding its breath.
Raven's thoughts shifted mid-step. "Cast [Dream Alter] on me," he said. "And explain it while you're at it."
Selene nodded, touching his shoulder. A ripple of pale energy spread outward, washing the world in a dreamlike shimmer. The trees swayed unnaturally, their colors bending at the edges.
"With [Dream Alter], I can shape perception," she said softly. "Anyone observing us sees only what I imagine."
"So… illusion?"
"Not quite. It's imagination solidified. Try thinking of someone—someone whose power you know well."
Raven closed his eyes. A name flashed across his thoughts.
"Charles Nightwind."
The world shifted. A warmth flared before his face, and when he opened his eyes, a fireball hovered inches away, crackling like a living thing.
He stared at it, stunned. The flame obeyed his will when he moved his hand, drifting through the air before bursting against a nearby tree. Bark scattered, smoke curling upward.
"What the hell…" he muttered.
Selene smiled faintly. "That's only a fragment of [Dream Alter]'s power. The fireball exists only here. The burn will fade when the dream ends."
She waved a hand, conjuring a small mirror from her dream storage. "Look."
Raven caught it—and froze. The reflection wasn't his. Deep-blue hair. Olive skin. Jade eyes.
"Charles Nightwind…" His voice dropped to a whisper.
Selene nodded. "The spell borrows what you know. Without knowledge of the target—spells, mannerisms—it fails. You can only mimic what fits your strength. Rank-1 can't mimic Rank-3."
He studied the fading burn marks on the tree, then let the illusion dissolve, returning to his true form.
Minutes later, they reached the main road. Dust lay thick over abandoned carts and torn banners. Even the air felt abandoned.
Raven's eyes drifted to the distant gates—locked, chained. "They sealed the city… maybe to stop the infection."
Selene's tone was thoughtful. "Yet Walkers could've escaped easily. Perhaps even they turned."
"Then only the commoners were trapped," Raven murmured, gaze sharpening. "Or worse—all of them turned."
A flicker caught his eye.
Something thin sliced through the air, faster than thought.
Raven's instincts screamed. Time slowed. The arrow shimmered with a faint yellow aura as it cut toward Selene's neck.
'If I don't move now—'
He stepped forward, spear flashing. The metal rang as he struck the arrow midair, knocking it aside. The impact numbed his hands, pain flaring up in his arms.
Selene ducked beside him. "Ambush?"
"Cover," he ordered, spinning the spear again as more arrows hissed through the fog. These were slower—less threatening. He batted them away in quick bursts of motion.
Selene darted to a nearby oak and crouched behind its trunk.
Raven scanned the woods. Shadows darted between trees—small, fast, deliberate.
Five shapes burst from cover, charging across the open field. Not men. Not beasts.
They were short—barely to his chest—with twisted faces, pointed ears, and skin the color of scorched iron. Crimson scales glimmered along their shoulders.
"Goblins?" Selene's whisper carried disbelief.
Raven tightened his grip on the spear. "Stay down."
He dashed forward, weaving through the rain of arrows. Each movement was sharp, controlled, instinctual.
'Too many shots… yet all fired in rhythm. One archer?'
He crouched, leapt skyward, and spun. The spear whirled around him like a silver storm, deflecting arrows as sparks scattered through the air.
He landed amidst the five creatures. Steel flashed. Two heads fell before their bodies hit the ground. The third tried to parry—but his thrust tore through its chest, leaving a smoking hole where its heart had been.
"GUGUUU!" One screeched, rushing him with a jagged dagger. Another hurled a poisoned knife.
Then—a flash of gold. Another arrow, glowing with that same eerie aura, whistled toward him.
'Again?!'
Raven covered his spearhead with faint aura and struck downward. Metal clanged. The arrow split midair.
But pain bit into his side before he could recover. One dagger pierced his abdomen; another blade scraped his shoulder. Poison burned through his veins.
He gritted his teeth, forced movement, and swung wide. The spear carved a half-circle—two goblin heads flew apart.
No pause. More arrows screamed from the woods.
He dove for cover, blood soaking his sleeve. His body trembled from the poison's slow grip. He crawled behind the nearest tree, breaths sharp and shallow.
Silence.
Then—movement.
A figure emerged from the woods. Taller than the rest. Skin black as obsidian. A single gray horn jutted from its brow, and a silver bow gleamed in its hand.
The goblin spoke in a guttural tongue, words like broken glass.
'Too far for the mind-eye spell,' Raven thought, eyes narrowing.
He waited, muscles coiled.
The goblin crept closer. Ten steps. Five.
Now.
Raven sprang from the ground and hurled his spear. The weapon sliced the air with a shriek—piercing the goblin's chest—
No, not piercing. Passing through.
The goblin shattered like glass.
"What—"
The forest cracked apart in a thousand fragments. Illusion.
Raven turned sharply—too late.
A cold voice murmured behind him, incomprehensible but thick with killing intent.
His mind-eye spell flared. The real goblin stood a breath behind him, bow drawn, arrow glowing gold.
He froze, then raised his hands. "Alright, you win."
A female voice broke the tension. "I didn't expect a mere goblin could be this powerful."
Selene stepped out from behind a tree, calm as moonlight.
"Don't—" Raven began, but she vanished mid-word.
[Blink].
She reappeared five meters away, hand raised, magic pulsing around her fingers.
The goblin reacted fast—kicked Raven to the ground and turned, bowstring trembling. Its grin widened, showing rows of yellowed teeth.
It released the arrow.
The shot screamed through the air, aiming at Selene.