A dull ringing filled Satou's ears.
At first he thought he was dead. His body felt heavy, as if the weight of the entire cave pressed down against his chest. Then, little by little, warmth returned to his limbs. He twitched a finger. A breath escaped his lips.
Then came the sound —
Ding! Ding! Ding!
[Level Up!][Current Level: 1 → 7][Skill "Stone Spit" has leveled up → Lv. 3][Skill "Poison Fang" has leveled up → Lv. 2][Minor stat increases detected.]
A faint blue glow flickered before his eyes as a translucent window hovered above him. His blurry vision slowly focused.
"...Level up...?" he muttered weakly. His voice was hoarse, his throat dry as dust.
He blinked, and the glow faded into the darkness around him. The ceiling of jagged rock looked familiar. Too familiar.
He pushed himself up slowly, his body still aching from the battle. The air smelled of damp moss and the faint metallic trace of blood.
His eyes widened.
He was back at the entrance of the cave.
The same rocky slope. The same trickle of underground water dripping from the ceiling. The faint draft of fresh air seeping in from outside.
"What the hell...?" he murmured. "How did I get back here? I was—"
He stopped.
Something warm and soft pressed against his waist.
He froze. Slowly, he looked down.
Four small figures were curled up against him, all breathing softly in their sleep.
Jessica had her tiny hand gripping his arm tight, as if afraid he'd disappear. Kelvin was pressed against his side, one arm thrown protectively across Jessica even in sleep. Goblin 1 had sprawled across Satou's legs, snoring with his mouth hanging open. Goblin 2 was tucked against his other side, her small fists curled under her chin.
All four of them. Together.
Satou's lips curved into a tired but genuine smile.
"So you four dragged me back here, huh?" he whispered, low enough not to wake any of them.
He watched them for a long moment, warmth spreading in his chest despite everything. After the blood and the pain and the fear, seeing all four of them sleeping peacefully was strangely steadying. He reached out and gently rubbed their heads one by one, his claws barely grazing their messy hair.
Jessica stirred, mumbling something before burying her face deeper against him. Kelvin's arm tightened slightly around his sister without waking. Goblin 1 drooled on his leg. Goblin 2 made a sound somewhere between a sigh and a snore.
Satou laughed quietly. "Sleep well, you little rascals. All of you."
He leaned back against the cold rock wall and let his eyes rest. His body still ached badly, but he could already feel the Regeneration skill working beneath his skin — wounds stitching, bruises fading, strength slowly returning.
"So I really made it out alive," he murmured. "Barely."
Another soft ding echoed in his head.
[Body Recovery in Progress...][Estimated Time Until Full Recovery: 4 Hours.]
"Guess I'll take it easy for now."
His eyes had barely begun to drift shut when the world shattered.
BOOOOOOM!
The shockwave hit like a physical wall, slamming through the cave with enough force to rattle his teeth. The ground bucked violently beneath him. All four small bodies were torn from his sides as the group tumbled across the stone floor.
Dust exploded from the ceiling in thick clouds. Rocks — some fist-sized, some as large as heads — came crashing down. The cave groaned like a dying beast, the walls themselves seeming to scream.
"What the—?!" Satou's words were swallowed by another deafening —
BOOM!
Closer this time. Much closer.
The entire cave shuddered. Cracks spider-webbed across the walls, racing upward like jagged lightning. A massive chunk of ceiling collapsed twenty feet away, the impact rolling a wave of dust and debris through the chamber.
Jessica screamed, her tiny hands clamped over her ears. Kelvin scrambled on all fours, trying to reach her through the chaos. Goblin 1 stumbled upright and immediately grabbed Goblin 2, pulling her away from a falling rock by the scruff of her neck. Baby goblins throughout the cave erupted into wailing, their high-pitched cries of terror layering over each other against the stone.
Satou's enhanced senses kicked into overdrive. His ears still rang from the blasts, but beneath the chaos he picked up other sounds — sounds that made his blood run cold.
Screaming. Adult goblin screams. Not the panicked shrieks of infants — these were death cries of warriors.
Steel clashing against steel.
The crackle of fire.
And something else. Chanting. Deep and rhythmic, in a language that felt fundamentally wrong to his ears.
Magic.
"Get up — all of you!" Satou barked, grabbing Jessica with one hand and Kelvin with the other. He hauled them upright as another tremor rocked the cave, his still-healing body protesting every movement. "We need to move—"
CRASH!
A section of the cave wall exploded inward, showering them in stone fragments. Through the settling dust Satou caught a glimpse of the main chamber beyond — and his heart stopped.
The entrance. The massive stone archway that led to the outside world.
The giant goblin who always stood guard there — the hulking brute with arms like tree trunks and an axe the size of a grown man — was gone.
Not just gone. Obliterated.
Where he had stood there was nothing but a massive scorch mark burned deep into the stone. The rock itself had melted in places, cooling into twisted glassy formations. Black smoke still rose from the spot, carrying the sickening stench of charred meat.
Satou's enhanced smell caught it immediately. He gagged, bile rising in his throat.
"Big brother, what's happening?!" Jessica's voice was shrill with panic, her yellow eyes wide and streaming with tears.
Kelvin clung to Satou's arm, his whole body trembling. Goblin 1 and Goblin 2 pressed in close behind them, both silent for once, their usual energy completely gone.
"Where is the guard? Where is everyone?" Kelvin asked, his voice smaller than usual.
Satou didn't answer. He couldn't. His eyes were fixed on the cave entrance — or what remained of it.
Through the archway he could see fire. The forest beyond was burning, flames licking at the sky, turning the morning sun into a blood-red disc drowning in smoke. Shadows moved through the haze — tall shadows, human-shaped, armored.
And advancing.
Another explosion rocked the cave. This time Satou saw it coming — a massive ball of flame streaking through the air like a comet, slamming into the rocky outcropping above the entrance. Stone shattered. Chunks the size of carts tumbled down, half-blocking the archway.
"We're under attack," Satou breathed, the realization settling over him like cold water. "The whole cave is under attack."
"By who?!" Kelvin shouted over the chaos.
Satou's jaw tightened. His eyes stayed on the armored shadows moving through the burning trees, closing in steady and deliberate, like people who had done this before.
His body screamed at him — four hours from full recovery, wounds still knitting, mana not yet rebuilt. None of that mattered right now.
He pulled all four of them close.
"Does it matter right now?" he said. "Stay behind me. All of you."