As Barua and his team crossed the ridge, they saw the goblins gathered on the riverbank. They didn't seem to like the water.
The evacuation camp was on the other side of the river, safe for now. The food the evacuees had brought with them was piled up on the riverbank, serving as bait for the goblins. The women and children had fled further into the mountains, so even if the goblins managed to cross the river, they would only reach the food.
"All right, let's drive them into the river from behind!"
The moment Barua gave the order, everyone prepared to charge down from the ridge to the river.
Suddenly, something massive came hurtling toward Barua from above the ridge. In an instant, the entire team was thrown back several meters by a tremendous vibration and impact.
"Is everyone okay? What the hell was that?" Barua asked as he sat up and scanned the area.
Looking to his side, he saw a huge goblin, easily ten feet tall, wielding a stone hammer the same size.
"Ugh, the Goblin King..."
The Goblin King is the source of a goblin outbreak, acting like a queen bee in a hive. Its strength and resilience are incomparable to ordinary goblins, and even skilled swordsmen can struggle against it.
Typically, the goblin king stays near the source of the outbreak rather than traveling with the horde.
Barua quickly snapped out of his thoughts.
"No time to dwell on this. Focus!"
He gave new orders:
"Everyone, keep your distance! Don't bunch up. Avoid this giant as much as possible and concentrate on clearing the goblins from the riverbank!"
The team descended to the riverbank, cutting down goblins as they went. Seeing this, the goblin king tried to follow them, but Barua stepped forward and blocked his path.
"Hey, I'm your opponent!"
Plum watched the scene from the forest on the opposite bank.
"Imenji..."
She wanted to rush over and help, but it was clear that the Goblin King was far beyond her abilities.
Yuta had warned her never to challenge a higher-ranked opponent unless there was no other choice. Her job was to deal with stray goblins, not the king.
On the opposite bank, goblins who couldn't find a place to flee began to cross the river toward the evacuees. If Plum let them escape, Melon, Akari's mom and the others might be in danger.
Deciding to leave the Goblin King to her father, Plum rushed to the riverbank to eliminate the strays.
"Big Sis!"
Melon tried to run after her, but Hoshi held her back.
"No, Melon-chan. If we go, we'll just get in her way. Let's trust her and wait."
Despite her words, Hoshi was visibly worried about what might happen to Yuta and Barua.
Plum managed to dispatch the goblins crossing the river with relative ease, but her eyes kept darting back to Barua.
"Ah! Barua, behind you - there are three!"
Hoshi's frantic cry didn't reach him in time.
The next moment, Barua was pinned down from behind by the goblins. Without hesitation, the goblin king swung his massive stone hammer at him.
"No! Why would you attack your own team?!" Hoshi shouted from across the river.
Plum saw it too.
"Imenji!"
Screaming, she slashed through the goblins in her path and rushed to Barua's side. But when she reached him, her beloved father was no longer breathing.
"No... Imenji. Don't leave us behind!"
Most of the goblins on the riverbank had been eliminated by then, and Okia and the others quickly moved to surround Barua and Plum to protect them.
"Everyone, we must protect Plum at all costs! Otherwise, I won't be able to face Barua!" Okia declared.
Despite their injuries and exhaustion, the team rallied to his words and shouted their agreement.
The goblin king raised his stone hammer and charged at Okia.
"Damn it! I'll stop him!" Okia shouted, grabbing his sword.
"Damn it! I'll stop him!" Okia shouted, gripping his sword tightly.
Just as the hammer was about to strike, a black shadow swooped in from the side and slashed at the goblin king's Achilles tendon.
"Yuta!" Plum called out.
"Sorry, Plum. I'm late. Is Barua okay?"
"No, he's not breathing. Daddy's not breathing!"
"Calm down, Plum. We'll take care of the big guy. Stay back with Okia and the others and start treating him!"
"O-Okay..."
On the other shore, Hoshi cheered.
"Yay! A hero has arrived! I'm glad you're safe, Yu-kun! Just don't lose to the big guy!"
Melon tugged at her sleeve.
"Akari's mom, what's a hero?"
"Well, Melon-chan... a hero is, um, a champion of justice?"
Melon tilted her head in confusion.
The Goblin King's Achilles tendon was severed on one side, slowing his movements considerably. Yuta, Sodon, and the others surrounded him.
"Sodon, is this the boss?"
"Yes, Yuta. This is Goblin King - the father of this pack."
"Got it."
Yuta darted to the other side of the king, aiming for the other Achilles tendon. His strike wasn't clean, but the impact caused the Goblin King to lose his balance and crouch forward.
Seizing the opportunity, Yuta grabbed the spare sword from his back and slashed at the goblin king's neck with all his might.
A sharp sound echoed, and the king's head separated cleanly from his body.
"We did it, Yuta!" Sodon and the others cheered and rushed towards him.
Yuta dodged their congratulations and ran to Plum's side.
"Imenji, Imenji..." Plum cried, clutching her father's still body.
Yuta looked at Okia, who shook his head silently.
Realizing the truth, an indescribable wave of emotion washed over Yuta.
Without a word, he knelt down and hugged Plum tightly.
On the opposite shore, Hoshi held Melon close, both of them sobbing loudly.