"The rats you killed," Kelvin said, looking proud. "We cooked them. Grimnir said we couldn't let good meat go to waste."
Satou looked at the meat dubiously. He'd eaten worse — much worse — but something about eating the same creatures he'd fought made his stomach turn regardless.
Still. His body needed fuel to recover. He took the stick and bit in.
It was surprisingly not terrible. Gamey and tough, but edible. Iron Stomach made sure of that.
"Thanks," Satou said between bites.
As he ate, his mind drifted back to Magicule Bestowal. The system had labeled it Unique — which implied few if any others in this world possessed it. That kind of power would make him a target if the wrong people found out.
'The humans already want us dead for being goblins. If they knew I could build an army of evolved monsters—'
He pushed it aside. One problem at a time.
"Grimnir," Satou said, finishing the last of the meat. "You mentioned the scouts found berry bushes. Did they bring any back?"
"A few," Grimnir replied. "Not enough for everyone, but it's a start. The forest around here is thick. There should be more food sources if we look properly."
"We establish foraging parties," Satou said, his mind already running through logistics. "Small groups, at least one fighter per team for protection. We can't send everyone out and risk losing people to predators."
"Agreed," Grimnir said. "I'll set up rotations."
Lyra cleared her throat. "There's something else we need to discuss."
"The cave?" Satou guessed.
"The cave," she confirmed. "It's too small. Twenty-five bodies in this space, plus seven injured who need room to actually rest and heal — we're crammed in here. And if we're attacked there's only one exit. We'd be cornered."
She was right. The cave had seemed workable when Satou first cleared it alone. With everyone packed inside, the limitations were obvious.
"I might have something for that," Satou said. "I acquired Earth Manipulation from the rats. It's weak right now — I can only move small amounts at a time and it needs concentration — but I should be able to expand the cave. Additional chambers. Reinforced walls. Choke points."
Grimnir's eyebrows rose. "You can reshape stone?"
"Earth and soft rock, not solid stone. And slowly. But yes." Satou paused. "Give me time to recover my mana and we can start on it tomorrow."
"That changes things significantly," Lyra said, her tone precise and thoughtful. "Separate chambers for the wounded. Storage for food and water. Narrow passages that funnel attackers into killzones."
"Exactly what I was thinking," Satou said.
"Are we staying here long-term then?" one of the unnamed goblins spoke up, his voice uncertain. "Shouldn't we keep moving?"
It was a fair question. They'd escaped the humans but that didn't mean they were safe. Staying in one place made them easier to track.
But moving with seven wounded and near-zero supplies would be just as dangerous.
"We stay until everyone's healed and we've built up our strength," Satou decided. "Once we're in better shape we decide whether to move on or fortify this position permanently. For now — this is home."
The goblin nodded, accepting it even if he didn't look entirely comfortable.
Satou was about to continue when something caught his attention.
His enhanced hearing — Demon Wolf senses and Keen Scent both firing at once — pulled a sound out of the forest noise. Footsteps. Outside the cave. Moving quickly toward them.
"Someone's coming," Satou said sharply, rising despite the lingering weakness in his legs. "Grimnir — fighters ready. Everyone else, back of the cave. Now."
The mood shifted instantly. Fighters grabbed weapons. The wounded were moved deeper into the chamber. Goblin 1 was already moving before Satou finished speaking, positioning himself near the entrance without being asked.
Grimnir planted himself at the cave mouth, axe ready. Jessica and Kelvin moved to flank him, their new Hobgoblin frames taut with focused tension. Lyra stepped to the side wall, out of the central line but positioned to observe and react. Mira settled two steps behind Satou without making a sound.
The footsteps hit the entrance and one of the sentries stumbled inside, breathing hard.
"Reporting!" the goblin gasped. "Something's out there. Multiple somethings. Moving through the trees. Big ones."
"How big?" Satou said.
"Bigger than the rats. And there are more than three of them."
Satou's Tremor Sense fired immediately — vibrations in the earth, multiple sources, heavy footfalls, spreading in a wide arc around the cave entrance. His Keen Scent layered over it, pulling a sharp animal musk from the night air. His enhanced hearing caught the soft pad of large paws on forest floor.
"We're being hunted," he said quietly.
Then — a howl split the dark. Long, mournful, entirely too close.
More howls answered it. Five. Six. More.
Wolves.
A pack of wolves, and they had found the cave.
Grimnir's grip on his axe tightened. "How many?"
Satou closed his eyes and focused on Tremor Sense, counting the distinct vibration patterns moving through the earth around them.
"At least nine," he said. "Circling the entrance. They're coordinating."
"Can we hold them?" Lyra asked from the side wall.
Satou ran the numbers fast. Five Hobgoblins — strong but untested in their new forms. Goblin 1 — unnamed, regular goblin, but reliable. Fourteen regular goblin fighters — weak individually, somewhat effective in a group. Seven wounded who couldn't fight.
Against nine coordinated wolves in the dark.
"We hold the entrance," Satou said, drawing his damaged sword. "Choke point. We don't let them past the mouth of the cave or we lose the wounded. Grimnir holds center. Jessica and Kelvin on the flanks. Goblin 1—" he glanced at the unnamed goblin who had already positioned himself without being told, "—you're with Grimnir. Lyra, stay back and tell me what you see. Mira—"
He looked for her. She was already beside the wounded, a crude spear held in both hands, standing between the injured goblins and whatever came through.
He hadn't needed to assign her. She'd already decided.
"Scouts — covering fire from the ledges if you can find one. Aim for eyes and legs. Don't waste shots on the body." He raised his voice to carry to the back of the cave. "Everyone else — stay back and stay quiet."
Through the darkness beyond the entrance, yellow eyes began appearing.
One pair. Two. Four. Six. Eight.
Nine.
The wolves emerged from the shadows in a slow, deliberate spread — movements coordinated in the way of predators who had hunted together for years. These were not mindless beasts. They were organized and patient and very large.
The alpha stepped forward last. Easily five feet at the shoulder, dark gray fur bristling with muscle, muzzle crossed with old scars. Its eyes settled on Satou and held there.
For a moment, predator and prey simply looked at each other.
Then the alpha's lips peeled back.
Fangs the size of daggers.
It howled.
"HERE THEY COME!" Grimnir roared. "HOLD THE LINE!"
The wolves hit the entrance as one body, and the cave mouth erupted into chaos.