"Have you decided on the name you want to use?"
The man leading the group asked casually as he stepped over a patch of overgrown roots. His armour clinked softly with each movement, and the katana at his waist reflected slivers of morning light filtering through the forest canopy.
He was the party leader, an experienced adventurer who had seen his fair share of low-ranking quests. Today's mission wasn't anything grand. Just a simple slime subjugation task issued by the Guild.
Behind him, a girl followed closely, her expression calm but slightly tense.
"Yes. Sword Maiden," she replied after a brief pause, tightening her grip on her sword.
She was the newest recruit in their group, an adventurer still at the beginner level. Venturing into the wild alone was practically suicide, so joining a party was the most logical way to gain experience. Even then, the forests beyond the settlements were filled with dangers that could end a life in seconds.
"Sword Maiden, huh? That's a pretty good name," said another girl cheerfully, walking beside her. She had long blond hair, similar in colour as Sword Maiden but slightly wavier, and a rather generous figure that her simple green dress did little to hide.
She was the party's Priest, specialised in holy magic. A red shawl draped over her shoulders, with a gold-ringed necklace catching faint glimmers of light. She looked every bit the part of a healer from the temples.
The group continued deeper into the forest. The trees here were thicker, the air more humid. Insects buzzed faintly, and the occasional rustle hinted that they weren't alone.
Then a voice came from behind, calm yet sharp. "I sense something."
A woman stepped out from the shade of a nearby tree, twin curved daggers glinting in her hands. Her outfit was more practical, a turban, light armour, and a short cloak for blending into the surroundings. A faint scar ran along her cheek, marking her as someone who'd seen real battle.
"What happened?" the party's vice-captain asked immediately. He was a tall man with black hair and a serious face, his sword already half-drawn.
"In front... there's a goblin," the scout replied, narrowing her eyes slightly. Then she added, "Alone. Wandering."
The group collectively let out a small sigh of relief.
Just a goblin.
They were a low-ranking party after all. Running into something like a direwolf or a drake could easily mean death. But a lone goblin? That was manageable.
The leader nodded, adjusting his stance. "Alright. Stay sharp. We are going to hunt the goblin, it will get us more points, also make sure it can't run."
Everyone followed in formation, the scout at the front, the swordsmen on either side, and the Priest and Sword Maiden slightly behind.
Sword Maiden exhaled softly, feeling the faint tremor in her hands fade away as she steadied her sword.
Her first battle as an adventurer was about to begin.
...
Hinata pov
I still haven't found the target yet. Who knew tracking a direwolf could be this exhausting?
Maybe I should've joined a party, at least then the work would be divided. The scouts could handle the searching while I focused on preparation.
But as soon as the thought came, I crushed it. Traveling in a party might sound useful, but it's also dangerous. Newbie adventurers are easy victims, perfect prey for betrayal and deceit.
Wait… was that a sound?
To be sure, I activated Farsight. Oh goblins.
There's a cave nearby, is that their den? How has nobody noticed this before? Then again, I'm asking a stupid question. High-level adventurers usually ignore this area, it's crawling with only low-level monsters.
Still… what are they doing in there? Might be fun to find out. Not like I have any pressing task at the moment. If things get bad, I can always run.
Moving quietly, I cast Formhide. I finally managed to reconstruct some of the lost art; it's still rough, nowhere near the refinement of Haze, but good enough for now.
Most monsters can perceive mana, but they can't maintain that sense constantly. That gives me a small window of safety.
Mmh… mmh…
The sound made me freeze. A muffled whimper, human. I extended my mana perception toward it… and there she was.
A woman. Bound. Shaking. Surrounded by goblins.
A newbie adventurer, no doubt, someone who thought low-level monsters were harmless. Now she's paying the price for that mistake, helpless in their grasp, Her cries are weak, strangled, each one mixed with pain and terror as the goblins take turns violating her.
Many people believe the goblins in Tensura are different from those in other fantasy worlds, that they're civilized and harmless. But that's not exactly true. In reality, goblins, like most low-level monsters, act mainly on instinct. The ones Rimuru encountered were exceptions. They lived in the Jura Forest, a region thick with Veldora's magicules. That concentration of energy makes it nearly impossible for ordinary humans to venture deep inside without being overwhelmed; their magicule resistance simply isn't enough.
That unique environment transformed them. The goblins of Jura grew sharper, stronger, mentally and physically. Not just them, but many other monsters within that forest. Perhaps Veldora's magicules forced evolution upon them, and their descendants inherited that intelligence.
Shaking my head, I refocused on the woman before me. I'm no hero who risks my life for others, but something inside me stirs, a shadow of my old chuunibyou self whispering that I should step in.
I sigh quietly. There's nothing to gain here, no reward, no fame, but experience itself is enough.
As Bruce Lee once said, I do not fear the man who has practiced ten thousand kicks once, but the man who has practiced one kick ten thousand times.
That's the mindset I need. To refine my skills, to push them to the level of instinct. Practice, repetition, precision.
Activating Thought Acceleration, I ran through my options in less than a heartbeat. The plan formed instantly, and in the next second, I moved.
A blazing sphere of flame formed in my left hand. With a flick of my wrist, it shot forward, exploding among the goblins gathered around the girl.
As expected, chaos followed. They shrieked and stumbled, shouting in their guttural tongue. Monsters often rely on telepathic communication, but when panic strikes, instinct drives them to their old habits, screaming commands aloud.
Taking advantage of the confusion, I dashed forward. One goblin stood behind the girl, basking in the false thrill of dominance. My blade cut through his neck before he could even react. His head tumbled away, eyes still wide with shock, as his body collapsed to the ground.
The rest lunged at me in blind rage, just as I wanted. My Doppel, standing behind them, was already readying another fireball. I triggered the spell through our shared link and hurled it into their midst. Flames engulfed their bodies, the stench of burning flesh filling the cave.
Even while controlling the clone, I kept my mana perception wide, scanning for movement. Caution first, always. The whole strike took only seconds thanks to thought acceleration.
When the flames finally died, silence returned, broken only by the faint, terrified breathing of the girl still bound before me.
Tch. They'd burned her face. It could be healed, maybe, but her eyes… those were different. Restoring them would take a high-level holy mage, far too costly. Even with enough gold, she might never find one willing to help. People of her standing rarely drew mercy from those who held such power.
Sighing, I slashed through the ropes binding her and crouched down to pull the cloth from her mouth.
"You okay?" I asked, knowing full well she wasn't. Still, it was all I could say.
"Please! Please! Leave me! Let me go! Let me—"
Smack.
"Calm down," I muttered. I didn't want to hit her, but Takashi's method wasn't entirely wrong. "I've killed the goblins. You're safe now. Can you tell me what happened?"
...
Hinata POV
Sigh.
I get the gist of what happened now.
Apparently, their party found a lone goblin and decided to hunt it down. Easy prey, or so they thought. But it turned out to be an ambush. By the time they realised it, they were already surrounded.
To save themselves, they did what many cowardly adventurers do. They sacrificed one of their own. And, of course, they chose the easiest target: the newbie who had joined them just today.
A common trick in this world. Even Shizune warned me about it before.
The goblins, as expected, didn't chase after the rest. Instead, they focused all their attention on the "reward" left behind.
I glanced at the girl beside me. She was still trembling, barely able to hold herself upright.
"So… what do you want to do now?" I asked softly.
"I… I…"
Her voice cracked, unable to form the words. Not surprising. Her adventurer life is effectively over, at least for now. She's blind, her eyes burnt beyond simple healing.
She told me earlier that her grandfather was a mercenary. He raised her, taught her a few basic skills before he passed away. And now, she's all alone with no one left to rely on.
I looked at her again, the faint smell of burnt flesh still lingering in the air.
I don't know why I feel she is very familiar like I have seen her somewhere.
"Let's go back to town," I said finally.
I'll decide what to do next once we're there.
************
So how many recognised her? I thought it's better to add some more anime verse, ofcourse most low level compared to tensura.
It will give story more content.