Dylan took the lead, crouching behind a dense bush as he scanned the nearby city.
The familiar stone torii gate that usually welcomed visitors to Enoshima stood crooked now, one side leaning as if exhausted. Beyond it, the narrow shopping street stretched forward… dead silence.
Dylan: (Not a single sign of a person.)
He signaled Ethan to follow.
Ethan nodded.
Both of them slowly entered the city through the torii gate, knives clenched tightly in their hands.
As they stepped onto the street, the silence felt heavier—almost oppressive.
They moved forward along the main road.
The shops that once lit up the street were all closed. Some stalls had shutters half-open, frozen mid-closure. The pavement was littered with tiny objects people must have dropped while fleeing. From a nearby balcony, wind chimes tinkled softly, swaying in the breeze.
Ethan: (looks like everyone ran away from this place in a hurry.)
*Thud… thud—*
Heavy footsteps echoed through the empty street.
Both of them froze.
Without a word, they slipped into a nearby alleyway, barely wide enough for one person to stand.
*Thud… thud…*
The footsteps grew louder.
Both Ethan and Dylan began moving through the alley as quickly as possible.
*Whoosh—!*
A giant green arm thrust into the alley, barely missing Ethan.
???: "Akaaaka!"
Ethan stumbled, his legs refusing to move. He looked up—and his breath caught.
The creature resembled the goblin he had slain before but this one was huge.
The goblin was far too big to fit into the alley, yet it kept forcing itself forward in a frenzy. The concrete walls scraped against its body, tearing at its skin as it tried to reach them.
Dylan grabbed Ethan and yanked him out of the alley.
Dylan: "You okay?"
Ethan took a moment, forcing himself to breathe.
Ethan: "Y-yeah… I think?"
Dylan: "Good."
Ethan: "I think that was a goblin."
Dylan peeked back into the alley.
The creature had the same ugly face and glowing red eyes—but it stood nearly eight feet tall. It continued struggling forward, uncaring as the walls scraped against it.
Dylan: "Now that you mention it… that does look like a goblin. A goblin on steroids, like— it is at least eight feet tall."
Ethan: "Yeah, but it doesn't seem very smart. It's still trying to reach us even like this. Does it even feel pain?"
He raised his hand, pointing at the trapped creature.
Ethan: "It's stuck. This is basically free EXP."
Dylan: "I've got a bad feeling about this."
Ethan: "Mana Blast."
The spell eventually fired.
The blast struck, the loud noise echoed through the quite streets and the goblin's lifeless body collapsed.
Ethan:"Open."
[ Name: Ethan
Class: Mage
Race: Human
Level: 3
Exp: 32/300
Hp : 92/100
Strength : 7
Defence : 7
Intelligence : 15
Mana. : 8/11
Speed. : 9
Bonus points : 2
Skills: Mana blast
Race Skills: Stat distribution ]
???:"aakaka"
A piercing cry echoed from above.
Both of the looked up at the same time and spotted a goblin crouched on the roof.
Without warning, it leapt.
The goblin dove straight down at Ethan.
Ethan bairly managed to dodge, stumbling back and taking cover behind Dylan.
Dylan stepped forward, knife raised, bracing himself.
Ethan: "There was another one!?"
Ethan steadied himself and aimed at the goblin.
Ethan: "Hold him off! Mana blast"
Dylan dropped into a battle stance, bracing himself for an attack. The goblin grabbed swiftly grabbed Dylan's head. Dyaln retaliated by plunging a knife in its arm.
With terrifying strength the goblin lifted Dylan and slammed himinto the ground. Tha goblin raised its foot trying to stomp on Dylan's face— but Dylan rolled aside, barely escaping.
Dylan threw his bag to distract it.
The goblin with one swing ripped the bag to shreds. By then, Dylan had already drawn another knife. As he stepped forward to counter, his vision blurred as his head felt heavy.
The goblin seized the moment and struck him hard with a uppercut, sending him crashing into the wall. The impact knocked the breath out of him.
Before Dylan could recover, the goblin rushed in again, jaws wide open as it tried to rip his face. Dylan shoved his hands forwar, struggling to hold its face back.
*BOOM*
The Mana blast connected.
The burst of energy tore through the goblin, spliting it in half.
Dylan shoved what remained of the goblin aside. As he tried to stand dizziness came crashing over him.
Ethan rushed to his side, grabbing his arm and pulling him up before he could hit the ground again.
Dylan: "I'm go—"
Ethan: "Just shut up. You need rest."
*Vrooom*
A bike came rushing toward them and screeched to a halt just a few feet away.
???: "Get on!"