Gauss didn't rush to make a move.
Instead, he chose to perk up his ears, look around, and observe the surrounding environment.
Besides the rock under the goblin by the pond, there were no other obstacles. The terrain was open, suitable for a frontal confrontation.
If he stepped out of the bushes, he'd be exposed in sunlight about ten meters away from the goblin.
Ten meters sounds close, but if he made noise while dashing, it would be enough for it to react, so he had to circle around behind it and quietly approach to launch a surprise attack.
Moreover, he needed to seize the opportunity to attack while the goblin was grinding its weapon, ideally before it had a chance to grab its weapon and prepare a stance.
With the element of surprise, armed against unarmed, plus the innate advantage of size, the battle should be decisively one-sided.
Gauss's mind was racing.
Having devised his plan, he hesitated no longer and slowly moved in a crouch, minimizing noise.
Bit by bit, he moved to the goblin's rear.
Once in position, he gripped his wooden spear; whether from tension or excitement, his hands began to tremble.
He swallowed hard.
Staring at the goblin sitting on the rock not far away.
The green-skinned creature was facing away from him, leisurely picking its feet and humming while grinding a stone spear, looking completely relaxed.
It wouldn't be long before his wooden spear would end its life.
Gauss took a deep breath. In his past life, he might have accidentally stepped on ants or bugs, but he had never intentionally killed. Now, about to take a living life, he needed some mental preparation.
Moreover, since goblins were demons and somewhat resembled humans, the burden of such a killing was greater.
However, it was indeed deserving of death.
Gauss closed his eyes.
The moment he saw the goblin, a childhood memory emerged in his mind like a reflex.
In that memory, in his childhood, dozens of goblins attacked his village. Though the adults organized and drove them off with pitchforks and scythes, a neighbor girl a few years older was taken and never returned.
As for her fate, it needs no words.
This was just one event he personally encountered; on this land, tragedies like these have been countless over the centuries.
Gauss opened his eyes again, but this time, they were free of hesitation and doubt.
The nail of his right thumb pressed hard onto his index finger joint, the stab of pain steadying his trembling hand.
He held his breath, lowered his footsteps, and moved slowly, crouching out of the bushes.
Left hand with a shield, right hand holding a spear.
At this moment, apart from the chirping of birds and buzzing of insects in the forest, there wasn't a single other sound.
Even the wind had calmed, and the pond lay without a ripple.
Gauss stopped about three meters from the goblin, choosing not to advance further.
This was already a very close distance; he could see the coarse hairs in the folds of its green skin, and the movement of its muscles with each breath.
Slowly, he stood upright, just as he would in a childhood game of red light, green light; he controlled his movements so that blood could flow smoothly in his body again.
Waiting until that stiffness was gone.
He took a deep breath, then suddenly lunged!
He took a big step forward!
His toe hit the ground hard; the rebound force thrust his body forward swiftly.
In three quick strides, he leapt onto the rock surface.
The goblin, engrossed in grinding its spear, was startled by the sudden commotion. It shuddered, instinctively reaching for the stone spear it was rubbing on the rock.
But Gauss, who had long prepared a plan, wasn't going to give it that chance.
He stomped down hard, pressing all his weight on the stone spear's wooden handle.
The goblin grabbed air, and immediately tried to reach again.
Gauss thrust out his wooden spear at this moment; the goblin twisted around in alarm, but still, the sharp wooden spear scraped a gash on its waist.
Watching the goblin retreat a few steps, its eyes still on the stone spear.
Gauss kicked the stone spear backward.
The stone spear flew several meters away.
Forcing the goblin to pass by him if it wanted the weapon.
However, he would not give the opponent a chance to reclaim its weapon.
Facing the goblin who had lost its weapon, he cautiously stepped forward two paces, thrusting forward with his wooden spear in his right hand once more.
Unfortunately, under the threat of life and death, the goblin used its small size to narrowly twist away, even taking advantage of the spear's forward motion to close in.
Gauss's heart raced, but his hand moved swiftly, instinctively swinging his left hand's small round shield, knocking it down.
"Wah wah wah! Wah wah!"
The round shield's larger area left the goblin unable to dodge, sending it flying, and it took a moment before it managed to get up again, the pain in its side enraging it, continually letting out sharp screeches.
The sharp teeth so close, and the splattering, stinking saliva made Gauss's pupils involuntarily contract.
Even without a weapon, the goblin still swung its clawed arm as it lunged, trying to harm him with its sharp gray nails.
The next moment, Gauss's wooden spear in his hand thrust forward fiercely.
"Pshhh!"
This time, the goblin couldn't evade.
The spearhead, after a slight resistance from the layer of skin, plunged into the goblin's body.
Bright red blood gushed forth from the pierced wound like mercury.
In an instant, it soaked Gauss's arm and clothes red.
A soft, obstructive sensation came from the wooden haft in his hand, as the blood slowly flowed down the spear from the wound.
"Ah!!!"
Even though its abdomen had been pierced through and its life force was rapidly depleting, the goblin still gritted its teeth, pressing against the spear, continuing to advance toward Gauss.
In its last moments, it still tried to attack Gauss!
Unfortunately, most of its strength was drained, its attacks weak and feeble, as the swinging claws merely struck Gauss's small round shield, causing no harm.
"Ah... grrk... ah...."
After releasing its attack, the sounds from the goblin were like a broken bellows, intermittent and broken.
After another few seconds of standoff, at last, its arms went limp, its body losing the last strand of strength, collapsing onto the spear.
Its struggle hastened its death.
Gauss swallowed, the intense struggle and fierce resistance he faced left his breathing uncontrollably heavy, his heart pounding rapidly as if it would leap from his chest.
Is it dead?
Gauss saw it lay motionless, but he still dared not relax.
Kicking out, he pulled the spear free, sending the goblin flying from the wooden spear. Then he mercilessly stabbed its heart area several times until its chest was a mess of blood and flesh before he stopped.
Now it's surely dead, right?
Gauss suddenly felt weak, as if he'd exerted too much force just now, and he sat heavily on a rock.
Looking down at himself, his clothes were covered in bloodstains, his hands likewise stained, he could even smell the fishy odor of goblin blood.
There's no elegance in battles between bottom adventurers and monsters.
Swallowing again, Gauss could still recall the goblin's unwillingness and madness, making his scalp tingle slightly.
His psychological resilience wasn't particularly poor; he just needed time to adjust.
Glancing at the now lifeless cold corpse of the goblin beside him, and the sticky, glaring red blood on his hands, everything felt surreal.
This wasn't a game, nor an adventure, but a real act of killing.
He sat quietly for a bit to steady himself.
Once his breathing calmed down, Gauss's unease from his first kill also somewhat subsided.
Human adaptability is strong.
Even though he still felt a bit awkward, he could now calmly accept having taken a goblin's life.
"Goblin slain *1"
"Monster Atlas officially activated!"
"Total monsters slain: 1. First blood completed. Reward: Mage profession skill 0th Ring Trick [Mage's Hand], Intelligence +1. Next stage: total monster kills reaching 10."
"You've cumulatively killed 1 goblin!"
"Acquired title 'Goblin Hunter', which upgrades with the number of kills."
"Current effect: Star Destruction. In battles against goblins and related advanced creatures, damage from attacks increases by 10%."