Ackster found a clearing lit up by a beam of moonlight. It wasn't the clearing itself that he was looking at. It was the creature in the middle of it, staring up at the sky with an airheaded gaze. The creature was too far away to make out details, but Ackster could tell that there wasn't much going on in the creature's head. So, he convinced himself that he had found the right target and that it wasn't a goblin. It had to be.
There was no way a goblin could stargaze so peacefully. And a goblin would have most likely noticed Ackster's presence and grown hostile. The creature in the middle of the clearing showed no signs of noticing Ackster or of becoming aggressive.
Ackster forced his trembling hands to stop shaking and tried his best to calm down his beating heart. It seemed like the near-death experience from last night affected him more deeply than he thought it did.
But he didn't have time to deal with his trauma. He didn't have much time before he had to return to bed. And he had to secure the creature before thinking of leaving the forest. So, he pushed his fear aside and sharpened his mind.
Although the creature looked exactly like a goblin, it shouldn't have the fighting strength of one. However, Ackster also didn't have the fighting strength of a goblin, even if he had managed to kill one.
He also had to stay alert since he was deeper in the forest than he was last night. If he caused a ruckus, he could accidentally attract something more fearsome than just a simple goblin.
So, before he stepped into the clearing, Ackster carefully surveyed the surroundings. He took a slow lap around the clearing, and while looking for any signs of other monsters, he also looked for a suitable weapon.
The fight with the goblin last night had shown him how much difference a simple wooden club could make in a fight between weaklings. The wooden club instantly erased any advantage Ackster had with his height and long arms. A weapon also helped deal more damage.
And since it didn't look like the creature in the clearing had any weapons, Ackster would be the one with the advantage if he could find a suitable branch to use. Unfortunately, he couldn't find anything as good as the wooden club last night's goblin used. So, Ackster settled for a less-than-optimal branch that was still better than nothing and a stone that was slightly larger than his fist.
But before he entered the clearing, Ackster threw a pebble at the creature. The pebble landing on the creature's head confirmed Ackster's hunch that it was what he was looking for.
As soon as it received an outside stimulus, the creature turned toward the source of the pebble with a glare. The creature locked onto Ackster with its gaze.
Ackster felt as if he was being hunted by an apex predator. It was like last night when the goblin had stared him down with its yellow eyes but worse. Ackster felt like a sheep, away from its pack, in front of a bloodthirsty wolf. His only option was to run.
The trauma Ackster fought so hard to push to the side struggled its way back to the forefront of his mind. Combined with the intimidation from the creature, Ackster was trembling so much he was about to jump out of his boots.
The only thing that kept him in place and with his gaze on the creature was the fact that he had confirmed the creature's identity.
An ordinary goblin wasn't this scary, even if it made use of Ackster's trauma.
Ackster forced his mind to work through the situation with cold-blooded rationale. Since his blood was frozen in fear, it was surprisingly easy.
The creature didn't move unless provoked. And even when provoked, it only faced what had provoked it. The creature didn't move from its spot. It just stared at Ackster, trying to scare him away.
Now, why would it scare him away instead of attacking him? It might be because it didn't feel like it.
But goblins aren't that advanced. Goblins are lowly monsters driven by their more primal instincts. Only in rare exceptions are goblins able to refrain from their desire to kill humans.
Even the goblin from last night and the fact that it didn't attack Ackster at first sight was something that only seldom happened. But in the end, the goblin still attacked Ackster in a frenzy.
However, the goblin-like creature in the clearing didn't even show any signs of moving to attack Ackster. It just sat on the rock and glared at Ackster.
Acksted used that logic to try and calm down his racing heart. He wasn't very successful, but that didn't stop him from moving his trembling body into the clearing.
Each step he took gave Ackster more confidence since the goblin still didn't show any signs of moving from the spot. The shaking in his legs gradually calmed down.
Eventually, Ackster was only a couple of steps away from the creature. His heart was still racing, but he had at least managed to stabilize his hands to the point where he was sure he would manage to hit the creature.
Ackster raised the stick in his hand, and the creature still didn't show any signs of moving.
Ackster couldn't help the smile forming on his face. After the misfortune from last night, he seemed to have been blessed with great luck.
The branch in his hand whizzed down through the air diagonally and knocked the creature to the ground.
The creature in the shape of a goblin sprawled on the ground with its limbs in some maggot-like way of trying to escape. Ackster briefly noted that the intimidation suppressing him was gone. But most of his fear came from his trauma, so it wasn't that much of a change.
With the goblin on the ground, Ackster already knew what to do. He staked the branch in the ground as he straddled the creature that was crawling on its belly.
He raised the stone above his head with both hands and smashed it down on the creature's head, unleashing a shower of blood.
'Wait. Blood?'
As far as Ackster knew, Doppelganger Slimes didn't bleed.