On the second day, Kyle and Nine, after having a good night's sleep, started hunting goblins again. But as they moved further into the tunnel, the number of monsters began to decrease. After a few more hours of walking, they finally saw some light in the distance.
"Is it the exit?"
Kyle exclaimed softly, increasing his speed and heading straight toward the light. Nine, who was beside him, also picked up his pace until they reached the source of the light.
Nine narrowed his eyes as he looked at the sight before him.
"What is this place?"
In front of them was a large open area filled with stones of different sizes. On their left were four more tunnels, similar to the one they had come from. At the far end of the open space, there was a round cave from where the light was emanating.
A goblin warrior, emitting the aura of an (E-)-Rank, stood guard in front of the cave. It looked just like the goblin they had seen before entering the tunnel, only smaller in stature. With an axe in one hand and a big shield in the other, the goblin continuously moved left and right, making it impossible for anyone to enter without being spotted.
After taking a good look at the goblin warrior, Nine mumbled under his breath.
"I wonder if we can kill it..."
He was just an (F)-Rank, while the Goblin had an (E-)-Rank aura. Even though the difference between them was only two sub-ranks, monsters were stronger than humans. To easily defeat a monster of the same rank, you need to be one sub-rank higher.
Nine was still thinking about how to kill the goblin warrior when Kyle said seriously.
"Let's not waste time, we can defeat it if we attack together."
Nine nodded, and they both slowly started closing the distance between the goblin warrior from opposite directions.
The first one to attack was Nine. He swung his sword at the goblin warrior from behind, trying to catch it off guard. But the Goblin warrior sensed the attack and blocked it using the axe. However, before the Goblin warrior could deflect Nine's attack, Kyle threw a fireball at its head, making it cry out in pain.
The fireball did injure the Goblin warrior, but the injuries were minor and didn't affect it much. Taking advantage of the distraction caused by Kyle's attack, Nine shifted his body slightly and unleashed his strongest attack on the goblin.
Nine slashed his sword vertically, creating a massive gash on the goblin's shoulder. Before the goblin could cry out in pain, Kyle pierced the goblin's heart, causing its massive body to collapse lifelessly onto the hard stones with a loud thud. Both Kyle and Nine looked at each other, smiling but panting heavily.
Afterward, they checked the goblin's body, hoping to find a skill core, but to their disappointment, there was none. Kyle sighed and shook his head before gesturing for Nine to enter the cave.
"Let's check inside."
Slowly, they made their way into the round cave, hoping to find something special. However, all that awaited them was a small goblin. The goblin was holding a pixel and talking to himself in a strange language.
Kyle narrowed his eyes and looked at the goblin, whose size was even smaller than his leg. He approached the small creature, who seemed to be busy in conversation.
"What the heck? Was the goblin warrior protecting its child?"
Nine also let out a sigh and followed behind Kyle. The goblin warrior had an (F-)-Rank aura, the lowest they had encountered so far.
Before the small goblin even realized that intruders had entered its territory, Kyle swiftly and cleanly cut off its head. Kyle gazed at the lifeless body of the goblin, and although he didn't expect much, he still sliced through the body with his sword in search of a core.
As he disinterestedly examined the goblin's body, a small shining orb appeared where the goblin's heart had been. Surprisingly, the orb didn't disappear upon contact with the air. Nine looked at the sparkling orb, completely dumbfounded.
"No way..."
Finding a skill core was incredibly difficult. It usually took killing a hundred monsters just to have a chance at finding a single skill core. Even Kyle wore a surprised expression, never expecting that this tiny goblin he had killed with the flick of his finger would possess a core. And not just any core, but one containing a skill!
The duo glanced at the sparkling small core, which was about the size of a finger. Now the question was, who would be the one to learn the skill?
Kyle looked at the core and then at the goblin.
'It's just a goblin core, what kind of skill could a tiny and ugly goblin possess? It's probably something useless.'
That's why he didn't want to learn it. Kyle generously tossed the core over to Nine
Nine caught the core, his eyes widening in shock. Skill cores were incredibly valuable, and Kyle was simply handing it to him!
Kyle hummed softly.
"Learn it. I don't think it'll be anything special, considering it belongs to this little fella."
Hearing Kyle's words, Nine didn't hesitate any longer and absorbed the core. In the next second, a surge of knowledge about the skill flooded into his mind.
Kyle looked at Nine, curiosity getting the better of him.
"So, what skill was it?"
Nine's lips trickled upward into a barely visible smile.
"Dark vision."
He changed his pale golden eyes into a vibrant green, demonstrating the skill. Dark vision wasn't a high-ranking skill, but it proved to be quite useful during battles in the dark.
Kyle blinked, then he cursed and kicked the lifeless goblin's body.
'Damn it!'
Who would've thought this puny (F-)-Rank goblin had dark vision? If he knew it would be useful, he would've learned it himself!
Seeing Kyle's regretful expression, Nine whistled and looked away.
"Let's find more goblins to slay. We only have a few hours left before we get teleported out of the dungeon."
Kyle let out a long sigh. Afterward, both of them started walking towards the opening they entered from because, even after looking around for a while, they didn't find another path inside the cave.