'Chingg!'
The sound of steel clashing against steel echoes around the dungeon. A squad of goblins has Travis and his team backed into a corner. We were heading down a side path to search a known Goblin camp when the hunting party returned. With a dead end at our back and a horde of monsters at our front, we were forced to hold our ground. The sound of swords clashing rings in my ears. Josh and Travis are using large swings to stave off the squad of Goblins attacking us.
Earlier, we traveled down a side path to check a goblin camp we'd found before, but it was empty. Thinking the coast was clear, we began rummaging through the hide shelters and various containers for anything useful.
Sakura was the first to notice. Without her alerting us to the danger, we may have already been killed.
"GYYAAAHHH!" A warrior goblin, hefting a Sabre half the size of its body, leaps high into the air. I'm stunned at the creature's athleticism, especially considering the half-plate armor it's wearing.
'Fwwwip!'
An arrow lodges itself into the goblins temple, and it ragdolls onto the ground.
'Fwwip, fwip.'
More arrows affix themselves between the gaps of the goblin's armor. These non-fatal injuries create just enough leeway for Josh and Travis to shave away at their forces.
"How are they so well equipped?" Yuki asks no one in particular. We're both standing in the middle of the formation, just in front of the mages. Occasionally, one goblin will try to run around our front line and get swiftly intercepted by us. While it makes me anxious to sit back while Josh is grinding himself down to the numb, it's imperative that I place my trust in my teammate.
[You can do this, Josh!]
It takes all of my concentration to tear my eyes off my friend fighting for his life.
"I've never seen goblins with high-quality equipment like this. What the hell is going on in this dungeon?" Yuki continues her conversation with nobody, but her words catch me off guard.
[Inari never mentioned anything about the strength of the goblins, but she may not have noticed or even cared. That does explain why the equipment we gathered from the goblins we killed was selling so well. The question is, what's causing these phenomena?]
The top half of a bisected goblin warrior tumbles to the ground beneath my feet. I take this moment to quickly examine its armor. The steel used to construct the plates looks to be of exceptional quality. The joints are well covered, and I can even see some chainmail covering vital points, which is incredibly difficult to make.
[What kind of master blacksmith is arming these monsters? Do they have comparable technology to humans?]
My mind flashes back to the magical mechanisms lining the perimeter of the fairy village. Every device supposedly came from this dungeon.
[Not just a blacksmith but a magical engineer too? Am I crazy, or is this dungeon super strong?]
A terrible sense of dread washes over me as I link together the numerous inconsistencies that I've noticed. Inari said she could easily clear this dungeon, so the boss monster isn't invincible by any means, but it certainly isn't something to take lightly.
"I visited the fairy village recently, and they had a bunch of magical equipment that came out of this dungeon as well," I mention offhandedly to the one-armed woman standing next to me.
"What?! Why didn't you mention that sooner?!"
"I don't know. I didn't think of it. Plus, it's not like you all asked about this place before we came."
"Still, you should have said something."
"Okay, cool, I'll go back in time and let myself know." I spit sarcastically despite knowing that this is the worst possible time to be picking a fight.
"We'll talk to Travis about it after this." Yuki sighs. Seeing her being the bigger person hurts, so I backtrack as best I can.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."
"Whatever." Our short conversation is overshadowed by the life and death struggle happening only a few feet away. Of the twenty or so goblins that started the ambush, only seven remain. The ground is littered with disembodied corpses. Knowing they're about to die, our adversaries gather for one last push.
I can feel a shift in their attitude. Sensing an opportunity to end this battle, I dash forward. With flash step, I flank their group from the side just as they're preparing to rush us.
[Ironflesh!]
I activate the skill silently to avoid drawing their attention and make my move. The tip of my spear slices through them. I skewer three of them before they notice me. Two break off to attack me while the others are instantly diced up by our pair of tanks. I simply take a few steps back and wait for our archers to finish them off.
'Fwip, fwip.'
The two goblins skid to a halt as they collapse onto the ground. I glance around to ensure there are no more enemies and walk back to my group.
"What the hell was that?" Jim throws his hands up in frustration. While no one was killed, we could have easily been wiped out by such a well-prepared force.
"Apparently, the goblins can make magic weapons too, or at least that's what Nick said." Yuki glares at me as if the whole situation is my fault.
"Is this true?" Travis asks hesitantly?
"That's what Inari told me. The last time I went to the fairy village, they had a bunch of magical devices guarding the walls. She said they all came from this dungeon."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Travis looks visibly flustered by this revelation.
"You never asked." I shrug. Now's not the time to be assigning blame, so I do my best to defuse the situation. Little did I know, my words would have the opposite effect.
"What?!" Sam shouts from the rear. Her face is red with anger. "Travis, you said you gathered information about this dungeon before we came!"
"I did, but there wasn't much written in the records. Only a few people have been here before."
"Then why didn't you talk to Nick and his team?" Travis blinks a few times in surprise.
"I didn't think of it," he replies abashedly. I notice his face blush slightly as he scratches the back of his neck.
"You fucking moron!" Sam screams. "You had one job to do before we left, and you fucked it up!"