Sven's gaze locked onto the approaching goblins.
At first, there had only been one, but now they had multiplied into a group of ten.
Ten identical-looking goblins, short, green, and ugly. But fortunately, none of them appeared to be carrying weapons.
His eyes moved around the restaurant. To his shock, every living soul had already escaped, leaving him behind without a second thought. No one had even bothered to call out him, they had just silently fled.
It didn't bother him much.
Right now, he had bigger problems. The goblins were closing in, and escaping wasn't an option anymore, they were already within jumping range.
His gaze shifted back to the glowing golden window. The answer had to be there.
And He quickly found it.
"Marionette's Gift?"
Focusing his mind on it, he suddenly felt something new, an unfamiliar sense, like a dormant organ waking up inside him. It was like discovering a hidden part of his body that had always been there, just waiting to be used.
Like awakening of the sixth sense.
He could feel strings attached to him. They weren't normal threads, but something alive, connected to his very being. He could feel vibrations through them, the faint footsteps of the goblins, their shifting weight, even the subtle movements in the air.
He could sense exactly where each string stretched, how long they were, and how many there were.
As the goblins closed in to be just a step away, his instinct took over. Sven flicked his hand downward, as if pulling invisible threads.
Sharp cuts instantly appeared across the abdomens of three goblins leading the group. Blue blood oozed from their wounds, and they staggered back, hissing in pain.
The cuts weren't deep enough to kill, but they had atleast bought him time.
Seizing the opportunity of goblin's momentary flinch, Sven retreated to a safer distance.
"Now I get it," he muttered, as a smirk curled up on his lips.
The goblins, however, weren't fools. They were intelligent creatures. Instead of charging at him recklessly, they stood still, wary and uncertain.
They didn't fully understand how they had been cut, but now they knew one thing for sure, they needed to be careful of the man standing before them.
"If I manage to kill them... there should be a reward, right?"
He had read enough fantasy novels and manga with similar scenarios to know this could be a possibility.
The idea lingered in his mind, defeating monsters could mean potential rewards.
And now that he'd figured out how to use his newly discovered power, he figured it was worth a try. If things got too dangerous, he could always run.
Right now, he could only control about two strings. Having already tested them, he knew they weren't sharp or strong enough to slice through all ten goblins that were slowly starting to close in on him again.
An idea clicked in his mind, and he quickly shifted his strategy.
He locked eyes with the goblins, and as they began to growl and snarl, making sure they were successfully baited he turned and ran towards the restaurant kitchen.
The goblins followed closely behind, keeping a cautious distance to avoid his strings.
A smirk crept across Sven's face. This was exactly what he wanted.
Once inside the kitchen, he frantically searched for the gas cylinder and some matches. There was a kitchen lighter on the counter, but that wouldn't work for his plan.
He hurriedly checked the shelves and drawers, growing frustrated as precious seconds ticked by.
Finally, he found the matches, just in time, too. The goblins were already closing in on him.
Now it was time to test his little trick.
Using his two strings like extra hands, Sven grabbed the gas cylinder and hurled it toward the approaching goblins. The metal container clattered against the floor, and just as the goblins flinched back in surprise, Sven swiftly sliced at the valve with his strings.
Of course, it didn't work in one go. He had to make several quick cuts before the gas finally began to leak.
The goblins with their sharp senses detecting the danger, panicked and rushed toward the nearest exit.
But it was too late.
Sven had already closed the door.
He ran away but after making sure he was at a safe distance, he used his handy new organ, the strings, to ignite the matchsticks he had placed near the door.
It sparked first, the tiny flame flickering before his eyes. In mere seconds, the spark erupted into a massive explosion, engulfing the entire establishment in flames.
"HAHAHA!!"
He let out a hearty laugh. It had been a long time since he'd seen such a massive firework.
It was... fun.
Suddenly, a golden window flickered before his eyes, like a notification pop up.
[Killed 10 goblins!]
[…]
[Received 10 unallocated stat points!]
"Huh? That means they're all successfully dead, right?"
He smirked at his newfound powers, quite impressed by their effectiveness.
"Well... that was easy."
Curious, he shifted his focus back to the reward.
"Unallocated stat points? Does that mean I can allocate them however I want?"
He tried opening his status window. After several attempts, he realized it only required intent. As the screen appeared before him, Sven found the unallocated stat points and placed his hand over
"Karma."
Increasing Karma seemed most important since it determined the strength and number of his threads.
But the option was greyed out. He tapped on it multiple times, but nothing happened.
"Makes sense..." he muttered. "By the description, it's a special stat that only increases by committing a murder."
Sven was disappointed, but he didn't dwell on it for long, in life not everything would go as planned.
Just then, something else caught his attention.
His extended right hand looked... different.
A strange crimson-colored tattoo had appeared, shaped like a cross with two threads extending from it, winding around his index finger.
"Damn..."
He moved his hand, checking for any other changes, but everything else seemed normal.
"Now... let's see what to do with these stat points."