G1 had been protecting and leading G2 and G3, which was something I found ironically cute. With his experience, I figured he had some leadership quality in him. Maybe still far from what I imagined Shiki would have, but leadership skill nonetheless. The only way to know, I figured, was by turning him into a king. Besides, I was already at my wit’s end knowing I had to face the Golden Sun, the hero of legends. I had no time nor energy to take care of a small Goblin village. What I needed to do was amass my own army to rival that of the Golden Sun’s.

Still, I wouldn’t just throw one of my subordinates into a snake pit. In addition to G1, I also decided to appoint one of my newly subjugated Goblin subordinates as G1’s right hand man. The other two, well, they could be some sort of special soldiers. With tearful Goblin goodbyes, which I found surprising, Bria teleported us back to the Hatchery with G2 and G3.

Slumping back to my chair, I breathed, releasing the built up tension in my whole body. Even though the Goblin King didn’t really manage to deal any damage, consecutively using Wind Walk drained my energy and built a considerable amount of fatigue on my body.

After letting out a big sigh, I asked no one in particular, “Did I make the right decision? Can G1 lead those goblins?”

“Don’t worry, Kaito. There’s only roughly 20 goblins there. If he can’t even lead that, then he doesn’t deserve being saved by us,” Bria replied.

I sighed again. I was still unconvinced. “Right…”

Without realizing it, my consciousness slipped out of reality.

***

Holding Gale with one hand, I stood in front of another Goblin village. Now that I knew that I didn’t have to subjugate the entire village, the plan changed. The Nighthowls and the Goblins would keep the pawns at bay without killing anybody. The point was to lure the Goblin King and usurp the throne.

“Hey, Goblins! Come on out!” I shouted, then sent a Wind Cutter towards the village, destroying a hut or two on its wake.

Just like before, countless green heads bobbed. Within a few seconds, a tide of Goblins was already rushing towards me.

Yes, that’s right. Come at me. I intently watched the horde charge. When the time was right, I activated Wind Walk. But instead of using it to evade like before, I jumped high. Just as I was about to fall, I would activate Wind Walk again. Repeating it over and over until I’d jump over the entire mob and land on the opposite end.

When the mob had realized what had happened, I had already landed on their rear. Regaining their senses, they turned towards me, but the Nighthowls were already behind me, growling and snapping their jaws to any Goblin finding courage to advance. Moreso, G2 and G3 were also on the other end, trapping the mob in a pincer attack. Of course, no battle actually ensued.

The Goblins didn’t stay put for long, though. Choosing between the demonic, sharp fangs of the Nighthowls and the trembling G2 and G3, they unsurprisingly chose to attack the Goblins. But before they could stampede G2 and G3, whom I imagine were about to shit their pants, a thick orange mist blanketed the entire mob. Soon enough, the goblins fell one by one.

Alright, everything’s going well. It’s your turn, king, I thought as I drew Gale. Right at that moment, a daunting screech came from the village. But unlike the previous one, the Goblin King of this village didn’t destroy its hut. Instead, it jumped out, giant spear at hand.

I knew it had sensed danger, so I didn’t wait for it to collect its thoughts and check the situation. I immediately rushed while replaying a series of movements in my mind on repeat. When the Goblin King saw my conspicuous charge, it gripped its spear and pointed it to me, locking me as its target. It hunched over, like a sprinter preparing to launch. Its green, wrinkly leg suddenly bulged. With a powerful kick that dented the ground, the Goblin King shot forward like a bullet.

I gripped Gale tighter, intently observing and waiting as the King quickly approached. When there was only a few meters between us, I replicated the movements that I repeatedly practiced inside my head. First, use Wind Walk. The mana surged from my hand to my foot, giving a boost as I shot forward. Use the momentum and control the strength… then inject more mana into Gale. The crisp feeling of surging mana flowed to Gale. Control it. Don’t let it explode… Feeling the power within Gale pulsating, I clasped it harder, forcing the accumulating power together.

I looked at the Goblin King. This time, it was merely two or three meters from me. Now! With all my strength, I swung Gale. A gray slash of energy with a bit of black marbling cut through the air.

Tsk, still not it. I watched the gray slash traverse the short distance. The Goblin King, however, was intently observing my movement as well. It put its spear in front to meet the slash. My slash met the spear’s head, and the collision of forces crackled. But such a last moment defensive tactic wasn’t enough to fight my slash. The spear’s head cracked, then completely separated from the shaf, spinning in midair.

Just as I was about to rejoice, the Goblin King, who resumed his charge, jumped and grabbed the spinning spearhead. Seeing that, my instinct jolted me awake. I instinctively knew something bad was about to happen. I immediately used Wind Walk to sidestep on pure instinct, then a sharp thud fell on the spot where I was standing just a few seconds earlier. I swept my gaze towards it and saw the small bit of shaft sticking out of the ground. The entire spearhead was completely buried.

Not good. I backpedaled a few steps to gain more distance from the Goblin King, but it wasn’t allowing me. I couldn’t increase the distance more than two meters, and if I backpedaled more, I would be back to back with the Nighthowls.

Tsk. Left without a choice, I used Wind Walk to counteract my speed and decelerate, then used it again to propel myself towards the Goblin King. If I couldn’t escape him, I might as well give it a shot. While in midair, I felt my mana traversing from my body to my hand and unto Gale. With a quick flick of my wrist, a slash with more evident black spots swooshed towards the Goblin King. The Goblin King was no fool. It put the spear’s remaining shaft in front of him in anticipation for my attack.

The slash met the shaft and was suspended in midair. The Goblin King’s hand trembled trying to fight the slash only with sheer strength, but the shaft wasn’t durable enough. A nick appeared on the shaft, and just like that, the slash cut through, splattering splinters into the air. Along with the splinters were droplets of green ichor, as well as a big green hand.

A haunting howl broke out. The Goblin King looked at me, its eyes showing hints of red. Still, my mind was elsewhere. That attack was better, but still was not the real deal. It wasn’t the same as the one I used against the other Goblin King.

I grit my teeth and stared at what looked like a berserked Goblin King. I was running out of mana, and I knew I wouldn’t last long once my mana reserves had run out. There was no time to hesitate. I used Wind Walk, then unleashed another slash. This time, there were more black, but still wasn’t right. The slash cut the Goblin King’s other hand. Almost...

I clicked my tongue, then grit my teeth. I rushed again, not even giving time for the Goblin King to howl. Next was the left leg, but still wasn’t quite right. Finally, the right leg. This time, the slash was entirely black. My eyes widened. That’s it! I did it!

I dropped Gale and raised both arms in celebration. I glanced back, instinctively searching for my stern mentor during this glorious achievement, but only the Nighthowl’s black fur and the horde of Goblins. A bit disappointed, I shifted my gaze back to the limbless Goblin King.

At this point, the Goblin King was no longer majestic nor terrifying. It was rather pitiful, coughing mouthfuls of green blood. Looking at its sorry state, my initial jubilance vanished. The Goblin King might have been a creature I needed to slay to reach my goal, but I didn’t mean to reduce it to such a sorry state. My poor heart felt guilt. I activated Wind Walk one last time, then ended its suffering with my newly mastered Crescent Slash.

[Congratulations for leveling up! You are now level 25.]