Chapter 5 - The First Trial (3)

Verity knew that if his only skill activated, then it meant that he was in imminent danger. His muscles tensed, and all his senses were on high alert. That’s when he heard the familiar whisper in his ear.

Below…

This time, the whisper was clearer, but still maddeningly cryptic. His pulse quickened, he did not know what misfortune was about to befall him, but he did not need to. The skill had not failed him yet, so there was no reason to hesitate.

“Watch out!”

Without wasting another second, Verity sprung forward and tackled Felicia before she could even react. Together, they hit the ground hard, sliding across the dirt entangled in each other’s arms.

‘Are we safe?’ Verity thought, sincerely hoping that he had interpreted the meaning of the whisper well enough.

He barely had time to look back.

In the next instant, a luminescent circle appeared where they had just stood, and from it, a pillar of flames erupted, incinerating even the air itself. The heat hit them like a wave, and both of their breaths got caught in their throats. At the sight, Verity secretly thanked his skill, and as for Felicia, she could only widen her eyes in shock.

She stared at the flames, her face pale and her chest heaving wildly. She knew that if she hadn’t moved, not even ashes would have remained of her.

‘If it wasn’t for Verity..’ She thought, as a shiver ran down her spine, and her heart pounded wildly.

She swallowed, her voice trembling. “How did you…”

“Felicia! Get up! We can’t stay in one place too long!”

‘Right…!!’

It did not matter how, and so Felicia stood up. Even more so than she had been before, she was convinced that sticking by this unassuming man was the right choice. At first glance, he didn’t seem to be anything special, and his fashion sense was questionable, but it was twice now that he had saved her life. If she wanted to survive, her best bet was to stick by him.

Still, that did not mean that she would mindlessly follow him. The threat the pillar of fire posed was considerable, but Felicia had noticed something crucial, and she sensed that it was not as dire as it was made out to be.

“Verity!” She called as they ran, her breath coming in short gasps.

“What?!” Verity replied.

“The fire circles! I think they’re happening because of the monsters with the robes and staffs!!”

Verity glanced back at her, raising an eyebrow. “Right, I had that figured out already, but thanks!”

It was already obvious to him. They were probably goblin shamans or mages, that much he had already gathered. The question now that he knew what they were capable of, was what to do.

Felicia did not appreciate his slightly condescending tone, but she ignored it since it didn’t matter right now. “I imagine, but I don’t think they’re that dangerous!” She continued, slightly out of breath from running with a sword in hand. It was heavier than she had expected.

“Huh?!” Verity’s confusion grew, and he barely managed to stop himself from tripping. “Did you not see that pillar of fire!? We would have been ashes if that had hit us!!”

She agreed, of course, but that was not her point. “Right, if it had! Don’t you think it’s weird that we were only attacked after staying in one place for a while?!” She recalled their previous encounters. “Think about it! While we were fighting the sword guys, if they could have, they would have roasted us!!”

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Verity placed his hand over his mouth and his eyes widened as the pieces clicked. “Right…!!”

“They’re slow! That attack is probably super slow! We can’t defend against it at all, and It wouldn't make sense for it to be that strong otherwise!” She took a few breaths before continuing. “So what I’m saying is, we can still go help that guy! We just have to keep moving and we’ll be fine!!”

Verity turned his gaze to the man they had picked out earlier. He had managed to kill the goblin archer in the end, but the warrior was now upon him swinging its jagged sword wildly. The man was fast on his feet, impressively so. His evasion was stellar, but he was tiring, and without a proper weapon, his chances of victory were slim to none. “Alright! What you’re saying makes sense! Let’s do it!” He said, nodding.

Verity was honestly surprised at how calmly she analyzed the situation. She knew nothing about goblins, and yet, she managed to observe and come to this conclusion in such a short amount of time. He had decided to help her completely on a whim, but with each moment, he became more and more happy that he did.

Their goal was set, and they sprinted toward the man and the goblin warrior. The two had not been too far, so they reached their position quickly. As agreed upon, Verity was the first to attack, while Felicia circled behind the goblin.

Verity raised his sword high, and he slashed down at the goblin with all the force he could muster. It had been easy the first time. His sword had slashed through the goblin unhindered, but now it was different. This one was quick to react. Its ears twitched as it sensed Verity approaching. Its attention immediately shifted to him, now uncaring for its previous victim, and it was able to see the sword descending upon it.

To the goblin, Verity’s strike was slow, crude and amateurish. It grinned as it saw the edge of his blade approaching him. It might have been weaker physically, but with a simple motion of its arm, it easily deflected Verity’s strike, which left him wide open.

The man before the goblin was now as good as dead, and it was already salivating at the idea of eating his flesh once this was done. It cocked its arm back, ready to stab at Verity’s heart, but before it could, a sword, much similar to that of its brothers and sisters, pierced its chest.

“Die, you scum!” It heard, before the sword was pulled out and the light from its eyes faded.

[You have assisted in slaying an enemy.]

[You have gained Exp.]

Verity blinked as the words were spoken in his head.

‘Oh? I get Exp for assists too?’

“Nice work!” Verity told Felicia, who had been the one to end the goblin’s life.

She pushed the hair out of her face, and looked down at the goblin, panting heavily. Unlike Verity, she had not even considered showing it any mercy.

“I… leveled up?” She murmured, a flicker of wonder in her voice. She flexed her fingers, an unfamiliar warmth coursing through her body, and marveled at how light the sword now felt. “I feel stronger too…!!”

His eyes still scanning his surroundings, Verity approached the man they had saved and outstretched a hand. He had a few minor wounds, but nothing that could threaten his life. The man readily accepted Verity’s hand and stood up.

“T-thanks for saving me, really…” He seemed strangely calm, but in this chaos, that was a good thing.

“I’m Verity, and that’s Felicia.” Verity told him, pointing to Felicia who was now swinging her sword through the air with a smile on her face.

“I’m Marco. You guys… can you tell me what the hell’s going on?” Marco asked, his voice tinged with confusion.

“Listen Marco, I’d love to chat, but we need to get moving, except if you want to end up as a pile of ashes. Grab that goblin’s sword and follow us.” Verity showed him his own sword he had stolen from a goblin warrior. “They’re not pretty, but they get the job done.”

Marco hesitated, his heart still pounding from his previous battle. “What…? I’m a wrestler…I’ve never even held one before…”

Felica’s voice cut through their conversation. “Verity! We need to move! I’m not sure how long we can stay here, but I’m not willing to take any chances!” She said, an anxious look on her face.

Verity was also feeling the urgency of the situation. There was no way to predict where and when the pillars would erupt, only that they targeted the stationary. He placed a hand on Marco’s shoulder, large beads of sweat rolling down his forehead, and gave him two options.

“Listen, if you want to fight these things barehanded, fine by me! We’re going to move now, you either pick up that sword and join us, or you don’t and you probably die! I’ll be off now!”

Verity really did not want to risk arguing with Marco any longer than this. They had to stay in motion. He just hoped Marco would make the smart choice.

Marco’s mind was racing. Verity and Felicia had approached him like whirlwinds, slaying the goblin and asking him to fight with them. They had not even given him a proper chance to process everything, and yet, he was meant to take a decision.

Still unsure, he looked at the sword of the now lifeless goblin. ‘So I have to use that sword and kill goblins like these guys…? This can’t be reality…’ He thought.

But it was real, and he understood that. The sensation of that goblin archer’s neck snapping under his hold felt too real for this to be a dream. He wasn’t going to die here, so he shook his head, picked up the jagged, rusted sword, and sprinted after Verity and Felicia.