January 8th, 2022
***
The Goblin King lounged on its gem-encrusted throne atop the stone steps, guarded by six others with purple skin. Before them were dozens of blue underlings. Mere cannon fodder in his eyes - but numbers can overwhelm. Richter started planning how to use the tunnel to his advantage. It'd be easy pickings. He'd force them to fight one at a time.
"Come here, human."
Though the plan wasn't necessary.
Purple and blue alike lined up against the walls to the sides of the stairs. Each goblin smirked or snickered, eyeing Richter as a dead man: he was already doomed in their minds. They had front-row seats to the show.
"You can talk?"
"Does that bother you?" The King scowled. "Does it break your feeble mind? This is why humans are insufferable."
Richter began walking toward the throne with slow, measured steps.
"It's not that. I guess you could say I'm excited." He pushed through the bloodlust, nearing the bottom. His head lifted to meet the King's gaze. "This is a lot to take in. Even now I wonder if I'll wake up in bed, if it's all just a vivid dream…What a shame that would be."
Richter brought his sword to center mass with the tip forward.
"But this feels real, and it gives me hope. Hope that my career will continue. Hope that I'll be able to set a better example. And hope that I'll find someone - or something - worth fighting. You have a throne, a small army, and an ego to match. So you must have a name and a goal. What are they?"
The bones in the King's knuckles and fingers cracked, snapping into place. He stood from his throne, eyes ablaze, laughing. "Truly insufferable.
The fingers on his right hand twitched as mana flowed out.
[Sapphire Creation - 15%]
Strong will gave way to shape and form, creating a single thick spear several feet in the air behind Richter's head. He'd never see it coming.
"I'm Drü: King of the Goblins. Every species or race in the universe has a leader. And all I want is what we deserve. Goblins have been on the bottom for far too long. Planet after planet, death after death, we've been kept from freedom. Working so hard just to get set back. From unlucky encounters to discrimination from blessed races.
Drü clenched his fists, the darkness in his heart taking hold. Then suddenly there was nothing. He took a deep breath, letting all the pent-up emotion drain.
"But no more. Finally, it's our time. We've arrived here - Earth. A young, backwater planet with poor prospects and no expectations. Populated by humans, the weakest of the blessed. We'll kill and colonize Earth for ourselves. It'll be our first real home."
"Aliens wanting to take over Earth? How surprising." A rare smile lifted the corners of Richter's lips. "If you had arrived fifteen years earlier I'd say you had a good shot at it, but a lot's changed since then. You're going to be sorely disappointed."
It was Drü's turn to smile, his voice condescending as he stood up. "You think we're the only ones who want this? I'm merely trying to get ahead of the rush. You have no idea what powers exist in the universe, or the various forces all vying to be at the top of the food chain.
The sapphire spear spun up, building speed. "And you never will."
[Muffle - 15%]
The spear bolted toward the back of Richter's head in subsonic silence. No indicator, no warning. Yet the splatter of blood and brain matter never came.
"Neat trick."
It shot through the space his head used to occupy before digging into the ground like a drill. Chunks of rock sprang out, bouncing around the space and tearing through the weaker goblins. Holes and gashes gushed blood onto the stone floor. Richter had his fair share of debris too.
He curved his blade around the front of his body — deflecting, slicing, or dodging the jagged pieces.
Drü shivered a little as he watched. Something about the flow of the man's sword, the arc and precision… Of all the prodigies he'd seen, how many Swordsmen could put him on edge? Just from witnessing a feat so mundane - dealing with rocks - his body warned him.
[King's Form - 30%]
He grew restless. It was embarrassing to use his unique King power like this. He encased himself in a solid gem coat; complete with a crown on his head and a threatening mask over his face. Two slits allowed his eyes to peek through.
[Sapphire Creation - 10%]
A spear crystalized in his hands as he leapt from the top step, diving at Richter's back. Another chill swept down his spine. A feeling like he was being observed from the inside out. Drü was already mid-air; no stopping now.
Gravity brought him closer to the bottom. Then suddenly he wasn't facing Richter's back, but his face.
Richter turned around with his blade held flat, knees bent, and braced the steel on each end.
The spear tip smashed into the center of his katana, nearly taking off his arms, but the timing was perfect. He jumped back into the attack and let the force carry him across the room. Richter skidded to a stop near the tunnel entrance; his body ached, but that was the extent of it.
"...What is your name?" The dirt and dust cleared to reveal Drü standing in a crater. He took a stance - spear held tight - all ease and calm gone.
A contrast to Richter who was having a great time. To think he almost ignored this cave.
"Richter Maier."
Drü nodded solemnly, "I'll remember it." The last of his mana swelled in his arms and legs.
[Mana Surge - 10%]
Strength carried from his feet, twisted through his hips, then guided by his arms. He burst into striking range and completed the motion.
The advantage of a spear shown to its fullest: A move created through countless trial and error.
[Drü Original Spear Style: Thrust - 10%]
It bypassed the five senses completely-
"Incredible."
-just not the sixth.
He missed.
A harsh clang and reverberation followed by bits of sapphire chipping off the spearhead. The thrust screeched along Richter's blade past his side.A kick shattered the weak bones in his back leg to throw him off balance.
Inches separated their faces. Drü stared through the mask, biting back the pain. Bitter loss and frustration mixed with helplessness in his heart. Was he so easy to defeat? So weak?
All the efforts and confidence he built threatened to break.
"How did you do it? How did you avoid it?"
Richter spoke softly, a hint of respect in his voice. "If five senses aren't enough, what about a sixth?"
Drü eyes widened. Yet again, it felt like he was being discriminated against. Of all the places, of all the humans he could run into, why did he encounter the one guy that could—
No. He needed to calm down. Don't give up.
"You said Earth changed. What did you mean?"
Richter shoved him back. With one leg broken, Drü couldn't stand under the weight of his sapphire armor. "A lot of interesting people started popping up in the last decade — each special in their own way. I've met most of them. That's how I know your goal of taking over Earth is impossible."
Hearing that somehow melted Drü's discontent. The Goblin King couldn't help himself. Seems everything would work out in the end; he never should have doubted. After all, this was what they deserved.
"That's a relief. If there are enough humans like you then I don't have to work so hard. Earth won't fall before I get to it.
He forced his body to stand, leaning on his spear like a crutch. He pointed a finger at Richter and whispered something under his breath. A wisp of iridescent energy fired out, vanishing into Richter's body before he could react.
Drü saw the glare and questions. Felt the bloodlust and shroud of death that enveloped him. He made a hand signal to the six purple goblins and handful of blues still alive.
"Just a little tracker so I can find you again, Richter. You're valuable. Perhaps I'll keep you as a pet in the future."
There was nothing left. His worries were relieved. He hastily flipped the spear around on himself and tried to puncture his own throat.
So close, but another pair of hands tore it out of his grasp. Richter tossed the spear aside.
"Nice try, but I want the XP. Besides, after such a treat, I guess I should show something in return."
Drü looked up one last time at the man across from him. His guards and followers in the background were dead, succeeding where he failed. Richter's right arm glided toward him at a steady pace.
[Shikigami Sword Style: Blind]
Yet He couldn't see the katana. Not the path it traveled, nor when it arrived. He didn't hear the air it cut through. Didn't feel the pain as it entered the gap around his left eye.
The tip plunged into his brain, then out. Drü's body fell over lifeless.
The room was a mess, but it was over. A blue notification rang in Richter's ears.
['Goblin King Dru Level 10 (CAPPED)' killed. XP awarded]
With some peace and quiet, he decided it was time to investigate his status page.
"Status," he said aloud.
A large blue window opened in front of him.
--------------------------------------------------------------
[Name: Richter Maier || Mana: 100%/100% || Level: 7 || Unused Attribute Points: 18]
[Class: Swordsman (intrinsic)]
[Attributes: Strength: 14 || Agility: 15 || Constitution: 13 || Magic: 11 || Intelligence 10]
[Abilities: Transcendent Bloodlust (innate), Transcendent Sense (innate) || Skills: None]
--------------------------------------------------------------
There were small question marks next to each attribute, so Richter started clicking on all of them.
[Strength - Determines physical abilities and damage dealt with physical attacks.]
[Agility - Determines coordination, and offers minor speed scaling.]
[Constitution - Determines stamina and sturdiness.]
[Magic - Determines mana density, which strengthens the effect of mana. Scales in combination with mana quality.]
[Intelligence - Affects the ease of utilizing mana. Note: Low intelligence does not prevent the usage of more complex skills, but it will put a heavier burden on the user.]
With a better understanding of attributes, he took a glance at the two abilities. They didn't offer any additional information, but he was already intimately familiar with them. He had used them hundreds of times before. The 'transcendent' tag might have referred to how he acquired them? He wouldn't lose any sleep over it.
Next, he clicked on 'Mana' and 'Skills'
[Mana - miraculous energy found throughout the universe. Capable of many things. Very versatile. The mana gauge shows the amount of mana you have left as a percent.]
[Skills - skills make use of mana to achieve an effect. Mana consumption is percent-based. The more mana used, the stronger the effect. Capable of many things. Very versatile.]
[Abilities - passive or active effects that don't require mana. Can be acquired through various sources.
At the bottom of the page were two tabs labeled 'store' and 'challenge'
He flicked over to the store tab. It was shorter and wider than the attribute window but functioned the same. The first two items were potions for mana and healing respectively. Upon swiping left, the screen scrolled through several new items. Various daggers and swords were on display.
Richter only now noticed the archaic pricing system. The use of metal coins was the only form of payment: from copper to silver, to gold, to platinum, and several other denominations he couldn't recognize. Richter had earned 34 copper so far, and the few weapons he had seen ranged from one to five silver. Mana and Healing potions were 10 copper each.
Curious, he decided to continue swiping left as much as he could, trying to find the end of the store. Several minutes later, there was no end in sight. The borders of the weapons he saw now alternated between orange, red, and green. He couldn't even tell what kind of coin they required to buy. He spent the next several minutes scrolling back to the beginning. Where he bought two Healing Potions and a Mana Potion.
Richter clicked on them, hoping for some insight.
[Healing Potion - recovers wounds and injuries. Very versatile.]
[Mana Potion - restores 100 percent of the body's natural mana limit.]
Richter sighed.
'As expected,' he thought.
He turned his attention over to the 'challenge' tab. It was a much simpler display, which said the challenge number, the tier, the challenge itself, and showed the challenge progress.
The current challenge was for forty-five percent or more of the global population to acquire a class. Then maintain this statistic for seven days.
After trying to absorb all of this new information, he walked toward the cave entrance, eager to enjoy the open air. He wasn't in any rush to use his attribute points; goblins were easy enough already.
A free man once again, Richter spread his sense back out to get a feel for changes in the area. It was around midday now. He had spent a few hours inside.
While feeling for potential threats, he stumbled upon a group of people a few blocks further down the street. They were surrounding another one of these cave entrances, each holding some form of weapon. He recognized one of their auras.
While not excited at the prospect of going into another one of these cramped spaces, the people there were pretty alert. There was even a girl - not much younger than him - who reacted to his Sense. Perhaps they knew more about what was going on.
And so, he set out down the street.
***