"What happened..."
"Ah... I burned them that's all."
Christa spoke rather calmly right after she just burned a group of not just ten or twenty, but fifty goblins. Itsuo and Selene could not bring themselves to move an inch after seeing such a site - a girl looking back at them with an innocent smile while behind her are a corpse of goblins that died after they were burned to death. It's like they're looking at a girl who doesn't have any fear of killing anything at all. Nor a feeling of mercy towards the monsters she killed.
"Let's see... I think I just killed fifty of them, that means we've lessened their numbers quite a bit. Lucky for us."
"Fifty...? You killed fifty of them in that instant...?"
"Now then, if you don't mind, I'll be going ahead to their nest."
Christa walked away, heading straight to the nest that Farlan told them. Meanwhile, Selene is watching Itsuo completely frozen on his feet as he took a glance at the corpses. He still could not believe what's in front of him, it happened so fast that he didn't see what Christa did just earlier. Curious filled him up, he asked Selene if she somehow saw what happened. Unfortunately, she did not see what happened, not even a glimpse of Christa doing something. However...
"I saw it..."
Itsuo and Selene turned their attention towards Farlan.
"I saw how the fire suddenly devoured the goblins as they tried to attack her after suddenly appearing out of nowhere. However, I didn't see how she did it. I don't know if my eyes are failing me, but I could only see her standing still in that spot as if she was purposely letting the goblins get closer to her."
It was then when Itsuo and Selene began to think, "Was Christa really a Silver ranked adventurer like us?" With questions inside their head, they decided to follow Christa to the nest. Soon, Christa reached the entrance of the goblins' nest - A cave - near a river and the mountain - with a skull totem right beside it, just like what Farlan described to them.
"Is this it...?"
Selene and Itsuo finally caught up with Christa outside the entrance.
"This must be it... The cave, the entrance to their nest."
"Eh... I thought the entrance would be somewhat flashy, I guess this soon to be goblin army doesn't have any plans to do that."
Christa was disappointed, she thought that the outside would be filled with lots of skull totems and other weird things that are made with human bones from the humans they've eaten. Instead, just a normal cave with a small sign that it was someone's territory.
"They'll be killed anyway so I guess that's fine. Itsuo, Selene, are you guys ready to go?"
"Yes, I'm ready."
"Me, too."
The three of them finally entered the cave. Of course, the cave is dark and is really hard to see where they would step into. And so, Selene used her ability to give light.
"Firefly."
Three dots of light came flying from Selene's hand. Flying right on top of each of them, these fireflies have started to produce light bright enough to light the path and the corners of the cave.
"Oh, you can summon light... Amazing."
"It's one of my abilities I learned, these fireflies should give us enough light for a while."
Thanks to Selene's ability, they can now proceed on their way with ease.
A few minutes have passed since they entered the cave, but the path seemed to be strangely long.
"We've been walking since we entered the cave but..."
"This nest sure is deep, huh?"
Christa noticed it, too. However, they never stopped walking. They kept going deeper and deeper as they continue to follow the path. Both Selene and Itsuo have already been drained after following Christa endlessly. But Christa continues to move forward.
"Christa, please wait."
Christa stopped from moving forward after Itsuo called him. She then asked what the matter is, Itsuo and Selene were completely exhausted and so they asked Christa to take a break, but Christa straight up denied their request without a second thought.
"If we stop, we'll be swarmed by goblins."
"Goblins? But I don't see anything in front of us, and there's no way they'll be coming from behind."
Both of them are unaware, but Christa can tell the presence of the goblins following their every step as they move forward.
"Let's go, we're almost there."
Itsuo and Selene muster up their strength and continued to move forward. And eventually, they reached a three-way cave. Seeing it makes Itsuo feel a bit annoyed.
"Looks like their shaman reached its limit."
Christa began to observe the holes.
"Shaman...?"
Selene asked as she and Itsuo tried to catch their breath. Meanwhile, after a few moments of observing the caves, Christa pointed the left cave.
"Let's go here."
"Again...?"
Both of them have no choice but to follow Christa. Thus, they continued to walk again. As they continue to follow the path she chose, a red light can be seen from the distance. They followed the way that leads to where the light is coming from. As they get closer, the red light becomes a torch, eventually, they reached it and ended up in an open area with torches placed and extends from the far corners of the area.
"What is this..."
They looked around and saw the area full of skulls and bones, cages that are made from bones and lumbers, and torturing tools of any kind. It was then they realized that they are inside a torture chamber of the goblins.
"This is probably where they take the bodies of the ones they killed and kidnapped. They're probably using all these torturing tools to cut the corpses' body parts and giving it to everyone."
"How cruel..."
Suddenly, a coughing noise coming from the dark corner of the chamber caught their attention.
"Is someone there?"
The three of them walked slowly and carefully. After getting closer to the source of the sound they heard, Itsuo and Selene were surprised to what they found.
"A person!"
They saw a woman lying on the ground naked.
"Itsuo, there are others!"
Selene pointed Itsuo to the two other survivors she found. Just like the woman they first found, the other two women are also naked.
"He...lp..."
"They must be the ones that have been kidnapped by the goblins."
"I'm glad they're still alive."
Both of them hurriedly helped the other kidnapped villagers, Itsuo then asked Selene to heal their wounds. After doing so, she asked them what happened. However, they remained silent, but their faces tell them that they've been traumatized.
"The goblins must've used them as playthings for days that they were here."
"It doesn't look like we can ask them where the goblins are either."
Meanwhile, Christa seemed to be looking at something from the sidelines, as if something was coming from a direction.
"What do we do, Itsuo?"
"While we have the chance, we should get the three of them out of here."
As he responded to Selene's question, one of the survivors turned her eyes to Selene. However, she was not directly looking at her.
"What is it?"
Suddenly, right after that moment, eyes glowing from the dark, falling straight onto Selene as it gives off its identity, a goblin.
"...Selene!"
Selene looked at Itsuo, completely unaware that she was about to be attacked. Itsuo saw the goblin holding a sharp dagger, flying straight at Selene, but he noticed it too late for him to draw his sword in time. Just then, when he thought he wouldn't be able to save her, right when Selene turned around to see the goblin falling down to her as it was about to stab her in her head, a fist came out of nowhere, hitting the goblin's head as if it was crushing its head to pieces.
The goblin was sent flying after it gets hit by Christa's fist.
"That was close, are you okay?"
"Yeah... Thank you, Christa."
Itsuo did not see where it came from until Christa told her that it came from the top. And when Selene used her ability to make the room even brighter than what the fireflies could do, they then saw holes on the upper walls with goblins staring daggers at them. What's more, there are other holes from the walls and goblins looking at them the same way.
It was then they realized, they fell on the goblin's trap. Selene and Itsuo are shivering in fear as they find themselves in a situation that is probably the last moment they will be together. However, Itsuo musters up his courage and draws his sword, bravely standing in front of Selene as to protect her from the goblins attempting to come closer and kill him and her.
"Selene... I didn't think we'd fall straight into the goblin's trap."
The goblins are starting to growl as if they are preparing to attack at any second.
"Selene, once you find an opening, use your shield to protect you and the women and escape from the tunnel we went through."
"Escape? You're going to stay? That's insane! Let's go together!"
Itsuo knew that it's too impossible to escape a huge number of goblins and get out of the nest without someone staying behind to keep the goblins away from them. And so he decided to become the sacrifice to let Selene and the others escape. But, it seemed like both of them forgot about someone, someone who just burned a huge number of goblins at the same time and saved Selene from death earlier due to their fear. Then...
"So you can use a shield, too, huh? Can you make a shield big enough for everyone? And make sure it's a strong one..."
"Huh?"
The girl spoke have her left hand surrounded in flames.
"...Because I don't know how strong it will be."
Itsuo hurriedly moved towards Selene. Just like what Christa asked her, Selene proceeded to make a shield as the goblins have started to make a move towards them.
"Light Shield!"
A yellowish light barrier covered around Selene, Itsuo and the others. As the goblins have begun rushing towards them, Flames formed and grow bigger and bigger into Christa's burning hand. She then points her hand at the direction goblins are coming from.
"Burn."
Flames blasts through her blazing hand.