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***
Moving into the new body was normal, except that I was a little taller. But the pain in my head was like I'd been drinking for three days and three nights! I woke up feeling so dry and dizzy that I would have been better off continuing to wander around in spirit form!
'Ohhhh, is that a... squirrel?' - Glancing up at the tree, I could somehow make out a squirrel running to its hollow tree.
Oh... I was beginning to think I'd caught some sort of debuff. Speaking of negative effects, I was wondering what my stats and skills were now, I had changed my body after all.
'Character Assessment!'
Name -
Race - Hobgoblin Mage.
Class - Soul Eater
Level - 10
Experience - 453/2000
Mana - 400/400
Strength - 15
Dexterity - 17
Endurance - 17
Intelligence - 40
Spirit - 11
Character Points -
Skills: 'I Am Goblin-1', "Appraisal-2", "Omnivore-5", "Stealth-3", "Hunter-3", "Regeneration-1", "Mana Control-5", "Body Enhancement-3", "Small Mana Regeneration Core-2", "Earth Magic-1", 'Healing Magic-1', "Resistance to Poison-1", "Resistance to Disease-1", "Resistance to Pain-1", "Astral Eyes-1", "Soul Eater-1", "Beast Instinct-1", "Acute Sniff-1", "Jerk-1".
Evolution - requirement - level 15.
Settings.
Oh... just looking at my stats made me feel wildly hungry! It was like I had gone through evolution, only many times weaker. The hunger was strangely tolerable, except that the growing discomfort told a different story.
'If I don't eat soon, I'll starve to death!' - so says my mind, and I have no right to argue with it.
Shaking my head, I instinctively clasped my hands together and felt a wooden object in my right one. Bringing my hand to my face, I saw a thick club with traces of blood. It weighed about five kilograms, and it didn't even weigh a metre in length.
And I held it in my hand like a stick... It was great! Although I was curious about something else: where did the goblin find this club?
Well, now's not the time to get distracted. While I was thinking about the situation, there was a battle going on in the camp for a long time! Or rather, the beating of babies. The leader of the bandits was swinging his two-handed sword and knocking people aside. Really, I don't know if he was killing people or just maiming them? Although, judging from his mad laughter and blood splattering, I can't tell if he was holding back his power.
Even from here, I can see some people lying in pools of their own blood, and some of them chopped in two. And for little else, some were moaning, holding on to the places where their now severed limbs used to be.
And this behaviour could not have pleased me. Now my experience and information is dying! Which is very detrimental...I guess. If you think about it, it would be better to wait until the leader is exhausted and the others are simply unable to fight me back, and then I can tie them all up and kill some of them in peace - so they don't suffer. Not out of pity, no, not because of him at all, they'll just die for nothing and take their experience with them!
Do I need it? Exactly, no, I need power!
Well, I'll keep watching the leader.
I slowly approached their camp under the cover of night. Somewhere in the trees I saw sentries, I should kill them quietly, so they don't make a fuss.....
...
While one cunning goblin was stealthily sneaking through the bushes to the tree where an archer and a sentry were sitting, the massacre continued.
The sentry himself, not noticing no one, calmly watched the battle between their boss and the rabble called warriors, and could not hold back a contemptuous snort.
'Warriors, how's that' - with rusty swords and no leather armour? Literally in just rags that won't even protect them from arrows! With no skills or experience? And they dare call themselves warriors? What a pathetic rabble.
- Ha-ha-ha! Shout! Scream! I like it when people moan in pain! Ha-ha-ha-ha! - though the archer could say that about his boss, who was now radically taunting the wounded, and fending off the sluggish attacks of those still on their feet. He himself wore leather armour covering his chest, and that was it.
A lucky arrow could cut his life short.
- Die already! You bastard! - shouted one of the men who had swung at their leader. He swung at the leader's arm, but was kicked hard in the stomach and flew a few metres away, crashing into a tent and sinking under the fabric.
- Ha-ha-ha-ha! Yes! More! Attack again! Otherwise, none of you will survive by tomorrow! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! - laughed a mad laugh as the leader laughed at one wounded man, stepping on his still healthy leg, thus scaring the wetness out of his trousers.
*♪ Bang, bang, bang, bang ♪
*P-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh* - The leader took a quick swing at the wounded man's leg, leaving a deep mark on the ground.
- Aah! My leg! My leg! Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!
- Ha-ha-ha-ha! Yes! Scream louder! Ha-ha-ha-ha!
- Take that! Murderer! - While he was mocking the screamer, one of the survivors came up behind him and swung a punch!
*Jerk*
But before he could even strike, his head flew off his shoulders and blood spurted in all directions, splattering the already bloodstained leader.
- Ha-ha-ha-ha! Yes! More! More blood! - he laughed madly and stepped his foot on the screaming man, crushing his head. This sent shivers down the archer's spine and he sighed bitterly.
'Once again, the one-eyed man saved his master. Damn! Stupid mutt, when are you going to die with your boss!' - He shouted angrily in his thoughts while keeping a nonchalant face.
This was the second squad to be destroyed by their own boss. And Jake had gone through the same thing once before, but he managed to survive and got a huge amount of gold. And that makes people turn a blind eye to a lot of things, even the weirdness of the boss.
- Way to go, Jake! Don't stand on the sidelines, join my feast! - The leader smiled broadly, looking over his shoulder to his six.
- No, no, boss, how can I take away your booty! - Exclaimed the latter with feigned indignation.
- Hmm? Indeed, they are only my prey. All right, make sure no one escapes! I'll savour their fear! Ha-ha-ha-ha!
- Sure thing, boss!
Jake knew it was wrong... but he couldn't deny that at the end of this massacre, the number of bounty hunters would be reduced, and that would put more money in his pocket. Though sometimes he had the urge to put an arrow through his boss's head and forget the whole thing like a bad dream.
*Shuruch*
As he thought about it, he heard sounds behind his back and turned around....
- Hello! - spoke a smiling goblin in his language. He was standing at arm's length away from him, covered in blood from head to toe.
- What?' Jake froze in place, not noticing the club falling on his head.
*Bdam*
His head burst like a watermelon, splattering the goblin with blood and bits of the man's brain, causing the goblin to sigh bitterly, hissing something to himself, 'I didn't use my power again, and all I wanted to do was stun...'
***
...
Ugh! I spat out the brains that had fallen into my mouth and raised my hands to the sky!
Why am I so unlucky? This is the third sentry I've killed! Is the amplification so powerful that it breaks people's skulls like nuts? The first one was okay, but I only boosted myself 50% and hit him on the head with my club, and I didn't expect to break his neck and blow his head off! I wanted to knock him out, like the other one...
Now this one, the dead guy... He has no head, only his jaw and tongue sticking out, and blood, of course, in all directions....
It's a good thing I didn't get the spit-up after my first kill like I thought I would. Or am I so impenetrable that the death of bandits doesn't bother me? Or... I just don't have those emotions, after all, I'm a hobgoblin! And they don't know what they're feeling. An emotion is just a biochemical reaction in the body.
It's a good thing I don't revel in it, that's all right.
Yeah! Right! I'd rather think like that than torture myself afterwards.
Speaking of killing. There aren't many men left of the squad. Now before my eyes, the leader of the bandits grabbed a man's head and slowly pulled it towards him. All this was accompanied by the leader's manic grin and laughter, well... and the man's screams.
Even from here I can hear the crunch of bones and torn tissue. And the scream of the martyr... brrrrr, it chills me to the bone, but strangely enough, I watched calmly at such a brutal way of killing! Nothing stirred in me! No pity, no compassion - just emptiness... and hunger.....
That's right, I forgot to eat. Except... eating people's corpses? I'm not so far gone that I can't eat them! What if they've got the local analogue of speed? What if I get sick? Have you ever thought about my health?
Who the hell am I talking to?
And looking at their corpses... they certainly weren't hygienic. Eating soil mixed with sweat is insane! I'd rather eat rabbit or bread than them.
- Ha-ha-ha-ha! Yes! My blood is boiling! Ha-ha-ha-ha!
Well, well, I guess there's no one left alive... No, there's some people moaning and holding on to their limbs.
I blew my experience! I've got to kill the leader, he's too strong. I'll just get down from the tree.
...
Meanwhile, the leader of the bandits approached the people lying on the ground and smiled kindly at them as if they were his children.
- Now we're going to play a game with you! The rules are as follows: with this, - he took out a silver needle, - I will poke you, and whoever screams - dies! Isn't that a good game? Ha-ha-ha-ha!
- You bastard! Kha... kha... boule,' the man jerked in a spasm and tried to pull the blade out of his throat.
*But the leader didn't let him do anything and stepped on the dagger, piercing his neck.
- No, no, I didn't say you were allowed to talk! That counts as shouting too! Ha-ha-ha-ha! Well, let the game begin! One gold,' he pointed his finger at one man, 'two gold, three, that'll be you! Ha-ha-ha!
In a childish way he jumped up on the spot and approached the man, who started to crawl backwards at the sight of him.
The first suicide bomber was so frightened that tears ran down his cheeks and he shook his head negatively.
- Well, well, Daddy's with you. Don't be afraid... - said the leader with a kind smile and gentle tone, then grabbed the leg of the suicide bomber and pulled him to himself. The man stumbled and rolled his eyes, and then passed out from fear.
The others, looking at him, tried to crawl away quietly, but the one-eyed man who had suddenly approached prevented them from doing so.
- Not so fast, sheep! - he grinned. - If you don't howl at the game, you'll survive and get so much gold that your pockets will be overflowing with it! - He spoke excitedly, looking at the five people.
They even somehow calmed down when they heard about the gold, but....
*wiggle*
- A-a-a-a-a-a... xxxrrrrr, bul... hrrrr,' a scream full of pain and agony quickly cooled their heads and reminded them that you can't buy your life with gold.
- Eh! I thought he'd be tougher, alright! Next! One gold, two...
But no sooner had he finished than a hobgoblin jumped out from behind one tent and flew at very high speed into the bandit leader, sweeping him into another tent.
- Wh-what?
The people stared dumbfounded at the place where their leader used to stand. They didn't even notice what had happened, only a blurred shadow slipped in front of their eyes, and then the leader disappeared.
Even the one-eyed man froze in place, not realising what had happened.
*Shurukh-shurukh*.
There were sounds of fiddling, attracting people's gazes, and a goblin, covered from head to toe in blood, emerged from the tent. He held a bloody club in one hand and the head of the bandit leader in the other.
What was scarier: the goblin or the previously insane leader, the people didn't know, but they turned pale with instinctive fear.
- Hello, people! Now you will gather in a pile, and I will tie you up and bandage your wounds! - he said with a kind smile. - And you, one-eyed man, I advise you to lay down your weapons and lie on the ground with your hands behind your head. Otherwise, instead of your leader's head will be yours! Is that clear? - he smiled with his yellow and slightly red teeth.
When the one-eyed man heard him speak, he immediately rushed away, which made the goblin cluck his tongue in displeasure and launch his club into the back of the fleeing man.
*Whether it was luck or something else, the club caught up with the fleeing one-eyed man and shattered his spine. The man forgot all about his quickness and fell to the ground screaming.
- You see what happens to those who won't listen to me! And I told you... Oh, well, why are you standing still! Schnell, schnell! Let's pile up! That's better, now don't make any sudden movements, and you, yes, you, with whole hands, help your men to stop the blood, they'll die!
...
After a while.
- W-what now? Sir...' asked the largest of the men as he dressed the wounds of the others.
By the way, that one-eyed man died very quickly, I didn't even have time to interrogate him... Oh, and he obviously knew more than those non-warriors. Anyway, the main thing is that at least someone's alive.
I used a rag to wash the blood off me and found some clothes. I found some clothes, but they didn't look like much, rough fabric, but at least they fit me properly! Now I look like those sentries. A hood that hides my face, gloves on my hands, boots, rough trousers and shirt, and a waistcoat with pockets. It doesn't give any protection, except from daggers, but at least it's something.
Now I don't look like some green hobgoblin. It's true that between my legs it's a bit tight, but it's not so bad and quite bearable.
Oh yeah, I also borrowed the bandit leader's sword and got a bow. Although I don't know how to use both of them, but it's not a waste! By the way, I forgot to mention: the bandit leader's soul was absorbed by me. But I'll tell you about that later, I have other interests at the moment.
- First of all, where are we?
- Sir? - The prisoner asked me uncertainly.
- Well, what kind of forest is this, and what kind of kingdom is it?
- It's an ordinary forest, it doesn't have a name. We also call it wild, as we are now in the border lands, far away from villages or town... sir.
- So... Okay, who rules the people?
- Erm, excuse me?
- Who's the King?
- A man... and... we don't know his name, sir.
...
- All right... tell me everything you know about this world, or you'll get a dagger up your arse! You don't want a dagger up your arse, do you?
They nodded vigorously, even too vigorously, and the information flowed.
To start with, the Earth is round. And now we are... in the kingdom of humans - Distan, next to the elves. Multiple races of humans and non-humans, just to name a few. That's about it. I also learnt that there are gods in the world, well, I knew it a long time ago, but it was worth checking. There are also temples in their honour, not many, but the first two are worth mentioning.
First: the Temple of the Mother Earth - local healers, the same priestesses with miracles. Basically heal everyone, for money or not - I don't know, but they co-operate with the adventurer's guild. The name of the goddess is Aqua.
And the second one: the Temple of Light and Order is the local court where human/human/elves/dwarf/dwarf disputes are settled. In short, in the name of the goddess! Justice and down the list from there. The name of the goddess is Ailura.
Honestly, never understood religion! Especially in my world, and here I don't understand it at all. But there are gods, and the miracle, as they call local paranormal abilities, too. True, how this miracle works, for me remains a dark cave.
And all of them confront demons and local monsters, mutants and someone else. The main forces of the undead are goblins, ogres, trolls and demons. And a little bit of local fauna, like the same wolves.
I even have a guess where the goblins came from! Every OYASH that tolerates and observes celibacy, releases a special energy into the magical worlds, which is soon embodied in the 'goblin'! Thus, their secret vices are embodied in another world! So, either kill the OYASH or accept that in some magical world, goblins have taken over the world! Ha ha! Am I...hell, am I lust incarnate? It's best not to think about it...
Also in the world, there's a class divide in society. There are nobles, the local upper class, merchants, adventurers, and common folk. I'm not talking about the kings, that's already clear.
They knew nothing about the politics of the world, but slavery is present in the world.
The currency is standard - one white gold coin is one hundred gold pieces. One gold coin is one hundred silver coins. One silver coin is one hundred coppers. And the rarest of all, a god crystal - one thousand white gold.
Ah yes, the Adventurer's Guild. A place where people take quests. With a system of thirteen ranks:
1. Adamantium. Incredibly rare. Only a few people in history have reached this rank. It's best not to even think about achieving it.
2. Orichalcum.
3. Mithril.
4. Platinum.
5. Gold.
6. Silver. These ranks are only held by the most talented members of the guild, with the rank being awarded based on their abilities and the amount of trust they have earned. They really are something with something!
7. Copper.
8. Ruby.
9. Emerald.
10. Sapphire. This is the middle rank. Few attain it.
11. Steel.
12. Obsidian.
13. Porcelain. These are the newbies. It's incredibly satisfying for them to be in the thick of danger.
And the difficulty of the tasks.
F Class: - can handle people who are skilled with weapons and can resist monsters.
E Class: - monsters that can not be killed by untrained people.
D Class: - a job reserved for veteran soldiers or experienced adventurers.
Three difficulties, there are further, but the brigands didn't know about them anymore. It's a miracle I got any smart guys at all.
Alas, none of the captives knew how to raise rank, for they were bandits of the destroyed village they had occupied earlier. Inquiring about the purpose of their assignment yielded nothing either. They simply killed whoever the finger pointed at. And only the leader and the one-eyed man had all the information...''
'Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah! I knew I should have stunned him instead of chopping his head off and consuming his soul!' - I mentally grabbed my hair, but outwardly remained as unperturbed as ever.
Okay, I've learnt everything I wanted to know, it's time I learned my duty.
- You've done a good job! Now, goodbye.
- Wha--
*♪ Whack ♪
A blow to the head with a club killed the unfortunate bandit, giving me 70 experience.
- Y-you're a--
*Whack.
- No-o-o-o-o-o-o.
*♪ Whack ♪
- N-don't! Please!
*♪ Whack ♪
- P-PLEASE! N-don't kill me! I-I will serve you! Just don't kill me! Please don't kill me! - The bandit sobbed desperately, hitting his forehead on the ground.
Uh, no, brother. If you were a pretty girl, I'd think about it, but you're a man, and you must realise that I'm a girl's girl, right? And it's not gonna work on me a second time.
* Whack *
- It's nothing personal, but you've seen my looks. And a free 350 experience doesn't come cheap. Pfft! Who am I talking to? It's time to check on my surprise. There's no blood on me, is there? I don't want to scare her. I don't think so...