As I reach the front of the cave a bright light envelopes my eyes. Squinting, I lift my hand in front of my face to block the light as I wait for my vision to return to normal.
When my sight is restored I'm shocked at the scene before my eyes. A beautiful forest inhabited by tall trees whose green leaves forma wondrous canopy that lets just enough light through to keep the atmosphere from feeling dreary while blocking enough sunlight so that the light that manages to penetrate through form beams that perfectly encapsulate the beauty of nature.
Lowering my field of vision I can almost hear a record player screech as its needle is knocked away from record. The peaceful beauty of the forest is completely ruined by the thirty or so goblin corpses riddling the ground all around the entrance of the cave.
Looking at the blood and scattered bodies I can feel an overwhelming sense of rage and grief building in the pit of my stomach. Unable to control my surging emotions I drop to knees and beat my fists into the ground while holding back my tears.
[How dare those bastards ruin this lovely scenery with their dead bodies!]
For the first time in my life I have used my mouth to properly speak. I had been avoiding talking since goblins tend to have naturally high pitched, shriek like voices. This time due to my anger at having this amazing scenery ruined I inadvertently spoke out.
[My voice is annoyingly high pitched as expected. Ah, ah, ah, ah. I don't exactly have a lot of range either. Why is it that no matter how I try to change it my voice I still sound so evil?]
Having properly let out my voice for the first time I no longer have any reason to hold back. Yet no matter how I try I can't fix how high pitch and evil my voice sounds. Maybe my dislike for my high pitched goblin voice is effecting my judgement and I don't really sound like this, but in my opinion I sound like some shady dude who creeps around in back alleys trying to pull innocent children to the dark side of society.
Shaking my head back and forth I clear away the distracting thoughts and remind myself to stay focused. Cautiously I move out of the cave, fearfully glancing left and right wary of possible ambushes. Step by step I move until I'm fully out of the cave.
I turn around and look back at the cave so I can have a proper idea of what kind of place this truly is. The cave is accessible through an opening in the side of a small cliff. The cliff only three or four times the size of a normal human and runs for quite a distance before decreasing in size and merging with the ground. The cave entrance is barely visible, hidden by various rocks, such that it would be hard to notice if you weren't specifically looking for it.
Delaying no longer, I make my way past the bodies of my fellow goblins and head to the tree line. The trees all around me hamper my vision, constantly obstructing my line of sight.
Cautiously I move into the unknown. I would prefer to be even more careful than I already am, but time is of the essence. If people from the guild show up while I'm still here or cross paths with me when I'm making my escape it won't end well for me.
I'm on high alert as I move through the forest. My head is on a swivel and my eyes are constantly scanning for anything out of place. I've sharpened my senses to the max and I'm doing my best to maintain my highest level of focus.
Only a few minutes have passed but I can already feel my focus wavering slightly. I would like to take a short break so I can keep my concentration as high as possible while moving through this foreign territory, but with my slow pace the place I'm standing would likely still fall in the guilds search radius.
I take a quick look behind me to try to gauge how far I've gone, but I just see trees. Even if I can't see the cliff or gauge my distance from where I started I can feel I haven't gotten far enough away yet.
My trek through the forest continues for what I would estimate to be a few hours. Finally I feel like I have put enough distance between me and the nest to be at least somewhat safe. I would continue on just to be safe, but I can tell that my focus has already reached its limit. Staying where I am may not be the safest plan, but I find it preferable to moving in a mysterious forest when I can't focus.
Having decided to take a break here I casually look around for a good place to hide out. Unfortunately my quick search comes up empty. Running short on ideas I let out a sigh and tilt my head back to look at the sky. However, this is a forest so the leaves block my sight of the sky.
A smirk floats onto my face as I think of a brilliant idea. Looking around for a prime candidate, I find a tree that's to my liking. Walking over to the tree I use my claw like nails to dig into its bark. Thankfully I'm light so it doesn't take much effort to climb up into the tree.
Adjusting the branches slightly I find a comfortable place sit. The branch of the tree I chose is close to half the width of a human waist. Although I don't want to admit, I'm of very small stature. Goblins aren't known for being the biggest creatures, and I'm only a day old so naturally the branch can hide me easily.
Why would I choose to hide in a tree? Goblins and leaves are both green obviously. Hiding in a tree I can use my skins natural pigment as a natural camouflage. This way I can keep an eye on my surroundings without too much worry as long as I don't do anything to give myself away.
Now that I've found a place to hide out and my nerves have calmed down I can really feel the fatigue set in. It's not surprising that I wore myself out, after all this is the first time I left the room I was born in. Not only did I leave the room I also spent a few hours walking through the forest while maintaining peak concentration the whole time. Thinking about it objectively it's a miracle I managed to get as far as I did without collapsing. Well I guess it's only natural for a superior being such as myself though.
Letting in exhaustion rush over me, I sit down leaning my back against the trunk of the tree. Watching the sun slowly set I dig my nails deep into the tree as I shut my heavy eyelids and accept sleeps sweet embrace.
The night passed without incident. The morning sun rose into the sky as sunlight slipped between the leaves to the forest below. The gentle light caressed my face as I lazily opened my eyes. As per usual I do a light stretch after waking up to prepare for the day ahead.
If someone was looking up from below my tree right now they would be shocked to see a goblin poke its head out and scout out the surroundings before disappearing yet again behind the branch. Naturally they would have to have exceptional vision since I blend in with the leafy backdrop.
After checking the surroundings I hide myself and start to make my plans for the day. I don't have a chance to think about it too deeply before my thoughts are interrupted by my growling stomach. That settles it; the first thing on my to-do list will be to find a source of food and water.
On top of finding food I should also put some more distance between me and the nest. Luckily the two aren't mutually exclusive so I can do both at the same time.
I poke my head out and do another quick check of the surroundings before I climb my way down from the tree. Back on solid ground I increase my focus and begin my journey once more.
Nearly an hour goes by without having any success finding food. I'm satisfied with the distance I've covered but the lack of food is getting a bit worrisome. Just as I was starting to feel down my feet come to a halt. Perking up my ears I can faintly hear the sound of splashing water off in the distance.
I resist the urge to run full speed towards the sound and carefully lower my body close to the ground. Being as quiet as possible I sneak toward the source of the splashing while trying my best to blend in with the surroundings.
It's been completely quiet since I initially heard the splashing. The closer I get to the origin of the sound the more I feel something isn't right. Judging that I'm close enough, I pick out a tree and begin to climb. Every time I sink my nails into the bark I do it methodically to avoid making any noise. Surprisingly it takes a lot of energy to climb so slowly causing me tire out more than I expected.
Upon reaching a branch I quietly climb on it and glance around the tree. Because there are other branches in the way I'm unable to get a clear view of what's happening on the other side. Cautiously I make my way around the tree and on to a branch on the other side.
Laying stomach down on the branch I dig my nails in to ensure my stability. At a snail's pace I peak my head out to observe the ground in the surrounding area.
A short distance ahead of the tree that I'm concealing myself in is a decent size stream. I would call it a river but it's too small to earn that title in my opinion. At the same time it's a bit too big to be called a stream, thus I have settled on calling it a stream for now.
Looking at the stream running horizontally through the forest I focus my eyes to the max. I can feel a minute heat emanating from my eyes but I don't have time to worry about it. Scanning the bank of the stream carefully I catch sight of a tiny bit of movement.
After focusing on that spot for nearly a minute I finally make out a figure concealing themselves near the stream. Even though it should be easy to make out such a figure I had so much trouble spotting them.
Making a mental note of where the figure is I continue my scan of the surroundings. Despite spending more than a few minutes, I'm unable to find any other signs of life in the area. Either my best efforts are unable to find something or there is nothing there to begin with.
I shift my focus back to the concealed figure. If they're going to such lengths to hide they must have a reason to do so. Although I can't figure out how they managed to conceal themselves so well I don't think it's camouflage.
The only explanation I can think of is that they're using some sort of skill. Of course if it is a skill that makes my situation even more dangerous than I originally anticipated. If the figure is in fact using a skill it can only be monster that is naturally skilled in stealth or a member of a highly intelligent race, such as a human or an elf, that knows how to use a skill to conceal themselves.
At this point I'm unsure if I should take this as a blessing or a curse. Enemies that rely on stealth are usually not as strong, especially defensively, as your average adversary. On the other hand, if they rely on stealth they are probably aware of such weaknesses and are especially wary of their surroundings.
Regardless of the true identity of the concealed enemy being cautious and waiting to see how things play out wouldn't hurt anything. Besides, I doubt they are just sitting there concealing themselves for nothing. Whether they're hiding from an enemy or trying to ambush prey it doesn't matter to me, after all the mantis stalks the cicada unaware of the oriole behind.
Quietly I shift my body and search behind me to ensure there isn't an arrow aimed at this oriole's back; after all I don't want to be a fool who thinks he's smart stalking his prey while being stalked in turn.
Since I don't know how long I'll be waiting here I once again begin practicing my perception while simultaneously concealing myself and keeping a close watch on the hidden figure. Doing so many things at the same time is difficult since your focus needs to be at multiple places at once but I shall persevere, as they say practice makes perfect.
Nearly half an hour goes by with me patiently waiting for some action to take place. Finally the hidden figure shows some signs of stirring. Even though they shifted slightly they don't seem to be making any moves, chances are they're preparing themselves for something.
Temporarily taking my line of sight off the hidden figure I search the other side of the stream for signs of movement. In the distance I can barely make out something but can't say for sure what it is. Even though I can't say for sure what it is I can tell it's moving in this direction.
The distant figure steadily draws closer to the point where I can finally get a good look at it. The new player in our little game is a young woman with pale skin and long ears. She has bright green eyes that accent her long golden hair and sharp facial features. She's wearing an elegant set of leather armor that looks easy to move in and accents her tall yet lean frame well. It seems the rumors about how beautiful elves are aren't exaggerated in the slightest.
The woman moves through the forest with ease as she swiftly approaches the stream. Once she gets close to the stream her eyes narrow slightly as she slows down and begins proceeding slowly while being cautious of her surroundings.
It seems she noticed that something is out of the ordinary but can't quite figure out what it is. She comes to a halt on the opposite bank of the stream and scans the ground and the trees carefully with her narrowed eyes.
Her eyes stop momentarily on the general area where the hidden figure is and my tree but she can't seem to pinpoint where we are. It looks like things aren't going my way as she repeatedly scans the area. I can feel my heart start to race as I've once again found myself in quite the pickle. The cogs in my head turn at max speed as I harden my resolve.
As her eyes start scanning my tree again I cautiously poke my hand out from behind the branch and use my finger to point at the hidden figure near the bank of the stream. When she notices my pointing hand a stunned look momentarily surfaces on her face before disappearing as if it never happened.
The hidden figure seems to have noticed the momentary change in the elf's expression as it started shifting ever so slightly. Having accomplished my mission of ratting out the hidden figure I slowly retract my hand and continue observing.
The hidden figure seems to know something is going on behind it as I can feel another pair of eyes scan the area I'm in. The scan was to no avail as I could feel the eyes move on to look someplace else.
While the hidden figure is looking for me it doesn't seem to have noticed that the elf has locked on to its location. The elf casually takes out her bow and knocks an arrow. The hidden figure seems to have heard her knock the arrow as it shifts once more and the feeling of eyes searching the area disappears entirely.
My body tenses as the elf looks in my direction and slowly draws her bow. After coming to full draw she suddenly shifts the bow changing its target from me to the hidden figure. As the arrow is being released the hidden figure tries to dodge by shifting drastically to the side.
The arrow speeds through the air and drills its intended target. The hidden figure's concealment was broken when he tried to avoid the arrow revealing a middle aged man with short brown hair and a long scar running down his left cheek. The man is a bit shorter than average with bushy eyebrows, brown eyes, and bulging muscles. Any chance he had at being called handsome was ruined by the lewd look on his face as he eyes the elf across the stream.
[Oya, if it isn't Ellis. What are you doing here I thought you went home sick?]
The elf makes a surprised face as she sarcastically calls out to the middle aged man who was hiding in ambush. Ellis' face contorts in rage as he glares at the elf on the opposite bank. Grunting lowly he pulls out the arrow that was stuck in his right shoulder as blood begins to leak from the wound.
[I used some of my herbs I had stocked at home to reduce my fever. I started feeling better, but since I already took the day off I figured I should resupply on herbs just to be safe. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined you would attack me out of nowhere while I was searching for stream whiskers.]
[Attacked you out of nowhere? The area west of Wolf Stream all the way to Hangman's Valley has been considered a temporarily restricted zone for the last week. You were at the guild this morning so you should know the restriction hasn't been lifted yet, and since you went home sick you couldn't have been given authorization by the guild master.]
I swallow my saliva as I watch the pair converse. Judging by their conversation they don't just know each other they work together at the guild. They wouldn't be talking about skipping out on work if they were adventurers so they must be guild personnel.
[Now that I think about it I do recall that being the case! My head has been fuzzy because of the headache so I guess it slipped my mind.]
[Really? No wonder you were concealing yourself in a restricted zone, your head was fuzzy from your headache. And here I thought you used being sick as an excuse to leave work early after hearing that I would be carrying out an investigation in the restricted area. Silly me, how could I have such an active imagination.]
[Just what are you implying, Sionia?]
The elf, Sionia, shows exaggerated facial expressions as she mocks Ellis. Ellis starts sweating and his face becomes panicked as he's verbally cornered. The pair narrow their eyes as they prepare to engage each other at any moment.
[Now that I think about it almost all the adventurers who went missing had either accepted long quests on a day you were working or received a quest at your desk. Let me guess, that's just a coincidence and you have nothing to do with them disappearing, right?]
Ellis' face twitches as he discreetly reaches into his bag. From behind him I can see him holding a couple of throwing knives and using his bracers to try to hide them from view. His movements didn't escape Sionia either as she quickly knocks another arrow and keeps her fingers on the string ready to draw her bow at a moment's notice.
Sparks fly as the two glare at each other from across the stream. As the tension builds my hunger gets the best of me and my stomach loudly makes its presence known.