Chapter 13

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 13: The Goblins Are Too Big (3)

What kind of figure were the goblins facing?

It was a human riding a bicycle, armed with a sword and a shield, with the title ‘Strongest Sword of Gumi’ above his head.

“Yaaaah!”

Despite Yeongwoo screaming and approaching at a rapid speed, the goblins paid no heed and continued their meal.

They forcefully separated the meaty thighs and calves of their prey, tearing apart rib cages and scooping out the entrails.

“This is insane…!”

Was this some kind of tribal ritual?

Yeongwoo felt an indescribable mix of anger and sorrow as he looked at someone’s limbs clattering on the ground.

And then, a profound sense of dread washed over him.

It was a fear stemming from the intuition that the position of the human race was no longer the same as before.

“Come here, you bastards!”

Eventually reaching the scene, Yeongwoo almost leaped off his bike, brandishing his Early Bird.

One of the goblins closest to him attempted to block, but…

Crunch!

Without a moment’s hesitation, the shield struck, grotesquely contorting the goblin’s torso.

-Keirrr!

The other goblins that followed suit met a similar fate.

“These damn bastards!”

Yeongwoo pounded them with his shield as if demolishing a building with a hammer.

Thud! Thwack!

Due to his immense strength, everything the shield stuck crumpled.

The goblins clad in metal armor and shoulder pads tried to retaliate futilely… The ones who tried to block his strikes with their arms had their entire arms broken.

Of course, since the number of goblins was much greater, sharp attacks came from the sides, yet each time, Yeongwoo swung his Early Bird.

Though not always fatal, it was enough to forcibly push back his opponents.

-Keeiirr!

At this point, the goblins rushing at Yeongwoo also realized.

They would all end up dead by attacking this one human.

And from that moment on…

-Kiiee…

-Kiiek…

They hesitated.

Unlike their previous aggressive onslaught, they began hesitatingly yielding their rush turns to each other.

The issue was none of the goblins wanted to face the lethal force of the human.

Consequently…

-Kiee…

-Keik…

The battle suddenly came to an abrupt halt.

“What…?”

Beside Yeongwoo, Yechan, who had been absentmindedly thrusting his spear, realized the goblins were no longer attacking and stepped back.

“What’s… happening all of a sudden?”

At Yechan’s question, Yeongwoo stared intently at the blood-stained edge of his shield and said.

“Those bastards have some intellect too.”

“Huh?”

“They hate dying, just like us…”

They understood fear.

Rather than finishing his thought, Yeongwoo darted towards the goblins.

Swish!

Based on his strength of 150, his leg muscles propelled him at an incredible speed.

So fast that…

-Kiii!

-Keeii!

Even the 2-meter-tall goblins fled in panic.

“Capture and kill them all! Don’t let a single one escape!”

As Yeongwoo spat out these sharp words between his clenched teeth, Yechan, who had been watching this entire spectacle dumbfounded, belatedly snapped out of his daze.

“Ye… Yeah!”

Thud!

Yechan brandished his long spear and chased after the goblins.

While leaping into the air, he glanced at Yeongwoo, who was smashing a goblin’s head with his shield.

To an unknowing observer, it’d seem like the goblins were the victims.

“Kaaah!”

Yeongwoo’s roar tore through the air like a thunderclap.

Subsequently, another goblin’s head burst open like a watermelon.

Clang! Boom!

With every goblin falling, there was a deafening noise due to the heavy armor encasing their bodies.

And this clamor attracted…

“What’s that noise? Where is it coming from?”

“Hey, look over there.”

“Uh…”

People nearby, familiar with periodic booming noises, and bold enough to venture close to its source.

What should we call them?

If one were to label them, they could be considered monster hunters.

They had decent armaments, above-average determination, and reasons to risk their lives fighting monsters.

A couple earning extra Karma to prepare for tax collection.

A girl supporting her single mother.

An elderly person living alone who couldn’t even get the basic funds from a currency exchange.

With a gathering of the frail and elderly, everyone had to rush in to fight off one or two goblins, but they were optimistic about the future.

While gradually enhancing their abilities with the leftover Karma, they unexpectedly encountered…

“Kyaaaah!”

A superhuman, emitting strange noises, annihilating a 2-meter tall goblin like it was a mere insect.

* * *

Peuwk!

Another goblin defeated.

Yeongwoo, with eyes now spattered a crimson red… rather goblin blood, surveyed his surroundings.

Having regained his senses, he realized there were no more goblins in sight.

“Hoo… I guess this area’s clear for now.”

He keenly felt his endurance at 150. Despite what felt like a long stint of action, he still had plenty of stamina left.

He could probably engage in immediate combat with those humans in the distance.

Pat, pat, pat!

Soon, the goblin corpses scattered on the floor evaporated into smoke and began to pour out crimson coins.

Shhrrr!

20,000 Karma per goblin.

“…”

Sweeping up the coins from the ground, Yeongwoo glanced at the group of people still maintaining a safe distance.

Encountering human groups in situations like this often meant they were likely to wield their weapons.

“Mister!”

Yechan, rushing over, pointed wildly at the group in question.

“Did you see those people?”

“I did. Just to be safe, use your Karma now. Put it all into your endurance if possible.”

Yeongwoo issued these instructions while immediately allocating his stat points.

This time, the earnings were 200,000 Karma, translating into 200 points for stat distribution.

‘For now, let’s put 100 into endurance and boost strength and senses a bit.’

[Character: Jung Yeongwoo07]

[Strength] 200 (19+181)

[Endurance] 150 (21+129)

[Durability] 150 (13+137)

[Senses] 100 (24+76)

The reason Yeongwoo decided to invest in senses was for the Gumi Sword Technique.

He wondered if heightened senses might enable him to better replicate the holograms of the Gumi Sword Technique.

Swoosh.

Completing the stat allocation, a surge of vitality coursed through his entire body, adding to it an unexplainable sensation.

“…?”

He immediately sensed something inexplicable.

‘Is it because I raised my senses by 50?’

It may have been an illusion, but Yeongwoo felt as if he could sense every single miniature vibration of his body.

Engulfed in this peculiar feeling, Yeongwoo finally looked towards the group of people on the other side who had just started walking towards them.

Despite the considerable distance, what initially seemed like a cluster soon resolved into individual silhouettes.

“…Huh?”

The first to react was Yechan, who had better eyesight than Yeongwoo.

[Translator – Peptobismol]

“Mister, those people.”

Before he could finish with “they don’t seem like bandits,” gestures were already being made from the opposite side.

Swish.

Every member of the group raised both hands into the air, allowing Yeongwoo and Yechan to discern their armaments and numbers.

A total of 7.

A couple that appeared to be husband and wife, two children of kindergarten age.

A limping woman supported by a girl.

And a skinny, elderly man with a wolfish haircut, his head of mostly white hair making it seem gray.

‘Only the couple and the girl have weapons.’

Observing the uninvited guests with a cold gaze, Yeongwoo noticed the children nestled among the adults.

‘Oh.’

Their expressions, akin to someone expecting punishment, as they raised both hands, caught his attention.

Swish.

As Yeongwoo’s sword, initially directed towards the other party, abruptly shifted downwards, Yechan followed suit, planting his spear into the ground.

Upon this action, the ‘elderly’ figures, previously shuffling cautiously, relaxed their expressions.

“Nice… to meet you!”

The first to speak was the man from the couple.

“Let us introduce ourselves…”

“Just a moment. Ask them to lower their hands. The kids.”

“…Yes? Oh! Thank you…”

“Not you, you keep your hands up.”

* * *

Haneulchae Residents Association.

The man said that they belonged to the residents’ association of an apartment building called Haneulchae.

So, while they were just fellow apartment residents before, this incident brought them together to hunt goblins, each armed in their own way.

‘How is that even possible?’

Yeongwoo pondered this but upon observing the conditions of the group, he somewhat understood.

Perhaps each member, being outcasts in their own right, deemed cooperation essential for survival.

Nevertheless, actively seeking a way to thrive rather than just congregating as the vulnerable was remarkable.

Most people would likely just flee from goblins at this moment.

But remarkable was remarkable.

“Yes, I get who you are, but why are you telling me this?”

When Yeongwoo drew the line with a firm tone, the faces of the Haneulchae residents, previously brightened, darkened slightly.

“Well…”

The man who had greeted Yeongwoo first attempted to speak, but surprisingly, the next words came from the elderly man with the wolfish cut who had been quietly standing in a corner.

“In a world like this, how can people survive without helping each other?”

Despite his skinny frame, an extraordinary physique and sharp gaze made the old man stand out.

To Yeongwoo, he seemed like the most unsettling figure among the outcast party.

“I know this is a presumptuous request, but please come with us. For the children… Please.”

Yeongwoo looked at the man next to him instead of the elderly man and asked.

“Who is this person? Is he a resident of the same apartment building?”

“He had been handling the security of our apartment building. Thanks to him, we managed to gather here.”

“A security guard…?”

A guard with a predatory gaze… Yeongwoo’s mouth involuntarily twitched.

Then, it was the woman from the couple who made the proposal.

“Fortunately, we’ve had no casualties so far, but there have been some dangerous moments. If you join us, at least we won’t have to worry about being killed by monsters.”

“That could be true.”

But what would he gain by doing that? Yeongwoo was about to continue his thought but chose to remain silent.

The two kids, fervently rubbing their arms, caught his eye, making him momentarily pause.

‘Shit. Aren’t the kids a bit unfair.’

As a human skeptic, Yeongwoo couldn’t help but show mercy, especially towards children.

Besides, in this world, monsters even preyed on humans.

“…”

The image of the gruesome corpses he had seen earlier flashed into his mind.

“I won’t stop you from following us. But the problem is, right now…”

As he spoke, Yeongwoo turned his head.

He was looking for the crimson pillar. It was necessary to alert them about the considerable danger their destination posed.

But…

‘Huh…?’

The location of the pillar had significantly changed, now shining so brightly it was visible from afar.

It meant the mutation zone had entered a residential area.

“Oh.”

“Uhuh.”

“Is that…”

The people from Haneulchae seemed just as intrigued, presumably because the epic quest had been activated due to their experience hunting goblins.

Thud! Thump!

A different kind of rhythmical sound started echoing, unlike the noises when goblins fell.

This was likely the sound of footsteps.

Thud! Thump!

Accompanying those sounds, the crimson pillar drew closer, and then finally…

Kwaeaeaah!

A thunderous roar, akin to something colossal shooting up into the sky, resounded.

“Oh.”

Sensing something, Yeongwoo looked up at the sky.

There, illuminated by backlighting, was a dark figure.

It had an enormous build, and on top of its head was some sort of name tag.

“Gumi… City Councillor… Jang Seonbok…?”

Indeed.

At that moment, Yeongwoo was looking at Jang Seonbok, the City Councillor who had returned as a goblin.

[Translator – Peptobismol]