Shanz lay exhausted and tired from the goblin fight, his mind worn out, but his trials were far from over. In this new world he had come to, many adventures and journeys awaited him...
A Town village of Veylith.
The village and its people lived not very far from the woods where Shanz lay unconscious. But now, it was under attack—raided by the same monsters that Shanz had fought.
The Goblins.
But what kind of monsters were they really? What goals and purposes drove them to raid the village? Were they strong, intelligent creatures? Who did they serve?
Having green skin and elven-like ears, most stood at the height of dwarves, though some were taller. But what truly terrified people about them was this: they evolved.
Through living, they could go through various stages—some failed, others achieved succession. The more time they had to survive, the stronger they became. They were truly monstrous creatures.
But what really made them capable of such organized destruction? Was it intelligence? Or something else entirely?.
Fire spread through the village of Veylith, the acrid smoke choking the air. Buildings were destroyed—some torn apart, others crumbled to dust. The farmlands lay in ruins, crops stolen or trampled, livestock slaughtered. Blood pooled everywhere. Even the river ran red, fish floating belly-up in the contaminated water.
Some villagers fought back against the raid, but it was cruel and brutal. Piles of bodies littered the ground—heads, arms, legs scattered across the blood-soaked earth. The war had become a massacre. Men and creatures screamed loudly, howling and screeching in battle.
Cries echoed through the burning streets as people desperately searched for their families, siblings, loved ones. Voices called out for aid, for help, for rescue that might never come.
The goblins showed no mercy. Even children, babies, and pregnant women fell to their brutality. Many women and children who survived the initial slaughter were dragged away—destined for slavery, forced breeding to expand the goblin ranks, or horrific experiments.
Clang! Clang! The sounds of swords colliding echoed through the burning streets. "You bastards! This village is not a supply depot for your food and equipment, nor are we your cattle to slaughter!".
A grizzled village guard swung his blade desperately, parrying a goblin's rusted dagger. Sweat and blood streaked his face as he backed toward the town square, where other survivors had formed a defensive circle.
"Fall back to the fountain!" he shouted over the chaos, his voice cracking with fear and desperation. The plan was falling apart, and he knew it.
"General! There are too many of them!" cried a younger soldier, his sword trembling in his grip as hope drained from his eyes.
"Protect the children and women! Don't lose hope! The reinforcements will be here at any moment!" the General barked back, though uncertainty flickered across his weathered face.
Behind them, the desperate civilians huddled together—mothers shielding their babies, elderly villagers clutching makeshift weapons, children too terrified to even cry. The fountain at the center of the square had become their final refuge, but even that felt like a death trap as the goblins closed in from all sides.
Don't lose hope? Why did I say that? The General's thoughts betrayed his words as his blade caught another goblin strike. There are no reinforcements coming! It's been two days since this raid started! We're on our own... we've always been on our own.
From the soldiers to the General, all were on the verge of losing hope. Many lay injured, their pained groans mixing with the clash of steel.
Blood pooled beneath fallen comrades who could no longer lift their weapons, while others clutched at deep gashes that painted their armor crimson.
Behind the front line, the wounded soldiers cried out in agony—some calling for their mothers, others begging for water, and a few simply weeping from the overwhelming pain and terror. Is there really no reinforcement coming?
The General's thoughts spiraled as he lost more hope, struggling to maintain his grasp on the battle for his town. He heard the cries and pained shouts of his people all around him.
Any minute now... how many more minutes until reinforcements arrive! I can't go on, I'm so tired!... Wait... I can't feel my body... no I wasn't tired... huh?... why am I... on the... floor?
His thoughts fragmented as his vision blurred.
The General had been beheaded—his body crumpling to the blood-soaked ground as a massive goblin chieftain stood over him, crude axe dripping red.
"General! do you have any other plans! General!... Gene—". After the soldier killed another goblin, he turned to the general to ask why he wasn't speaking, until he saw the faces of the other soldiers.
The soldiers behind him screamed in horror as their leader's head rolled across the cobblestones. Without their General, the last threads of hope snapped. The defensive line began to collapse as panic spread through the remaining defenders.
"The General is dead! The General is dead!" The cry echoed through the square as goblins poured through the broken formation, their victory howls drowning out the villagers' desperate pleas.
The Goblin triumphed. Goblins pierce the defense as it falls, killing and stabbing the troops, tearing out their arms and legs, and listening to their cries of agony.
Women are taken from their clothing, chained up, and used as breeding slaves, some are decapitated, leaving blood all over the place. The young women were taken alongside the adult women, and the young men were executed.
3 days later...
In the Woods of Veylith, Shanz lay groaning and restless on the forest floor...
-
[SYSTEM]
Alarm Sequence Initiated
Countdown: 3… 2… 1… *BZZZT—*
-
Shanz's eyes snapped open wide as he gasped for breath. His small body jerked upright, disoriented and aching all over. The memories came flooding back—the goblin, the fight, the exhaustion that had knocked him unconscious.
"Ugh... my head..." he mumbled, rubbing his temples. His mouth felt dry as sandpaper, and his stomach cramped with hunger. "How long was I out?"
He looked around, blinking in the dappled sunlight. The goblin's corpse still lay nearby, though it had begun to decompose, attracting flies.
The katana rested where he'd dropped it, its dark metal gleaming despite being covered in dried blood.
Shanz's stomach growled loudly, the sound echoing through the quiet woods. He hadn't eaten anything since before the fight, and his body felt weak from the extended unconsciousness.
"Food... I need food," he muttered, pushing himself to his feet on shaky legs. His gaze drifted to the goblin corpse, and a memory surfaced from his gaming days. "Wait... in games, monster parts are usually valuable. Materials, crafting components, sometimes even..."
He paused, looking at the dead creature with a mix of curiosity and desperation. "Food?"
He began standing and picked up the katana as he walked toward the corpse.
"Ah... that strong smell. Am I insane? Why would I just eat it based on what I witnessed in the games I played? I mean, goblin toes and ears were valuable in those games—selling them to the Guild, secret merchants, or... what's that called again? Wizards? No, it's alchemists, and those have... variations, well..."
Walking toward the corpse, thoughts raced through his mind about why he would eat something that clearly isn't edible food based on what he'd witnessed.
Despite doubting if he was sane or insane, he wanted to see if those bits were worth acquiring.
He crouched beside the decomposing goblin, covering his nose with his sleeve.
The stench was overwhelming, but something compelled him to continue - whether it was desperation, curiosity, or genuine madness, he couldn't tell. "Am I really doing this?" he muttered, staring at the rotting creature.
"This is either the smartest survival move or I've completely lost it." He raised the katana, still unsure if he was thinking clearly or if hunger and shock had driven him to insanity.
Curious to find its worth, he began chopping the corpse—starting with the ears, then the toes, slicing each side with grim focus. One by one, the limbs fell, then the head. Nothing was spared.
He severed everything, even the private parts, tossing aside the unnecessary scraps—fingers, hands, all the useless bits.
"Haven't done this before…", he muttered, flinching slightly each time the blade cut through flesh. "I'm lookin' like a madman here… well, it did have life and purpose… and it tried to kill me."
The thought lingered, his reaction caught somewhere between awareness and unease. He glanced at the remains and wondered how he would even cook it. Skewering with sticks came to mind.
With that, he moved on, gathering wood as he walked through the forest. Snapping off a branch, he murmured, "Let's try branches first—see if this blade can handle more than flesh."
He swung. The steel slashed through the wood with a heavy crack, forcing him to push through the thickness. "Urghh!" he grunted, not surprised, but reacting naturally to the effort.
Checking the blade, he rubbed his thumb along the edge, mildly impressed it hadn't dented. Turning back to the branch, he gave a small nod—the cut was clean, sharp enough to prove the weapon's worth.
"Well… this isn't a normal katana. If it can slice this deep through a branch, then what else can it do aside from chopping?"
His curiosity gnawed at him, but for now, he retraced his steps back to the site where he had fought the goblins. The ground still carried the marks of the struggle—trampled soil, splatters of dark blood. There, he began gathering wood, stacking it together as the thought struck him.
"Fire… how am I even supposed to start a fire? There's a lot of ways, sure, but I'm too damn lazy to try them all. Hah… but wait—if I do manage to start one, would the system count it? Would I suddenly unlock fire magic just like that?"
"Strange thing is… I haven't received any quests at all. Not even a word from whoever created this system. It feels… alive somehow. Like it's breathing, like it's watching me—but it doesn't realize it's doing so. As if it runs on its own, without thought, without awareness… just existing, yet not recognizing its own work."
He paused, then shook his head with a half-snort. "Nah, nvm that. I just wanna start the fire before I think too deep."
He sighed and crouched down, pulling the pile of branches closer. "Alright… fire. Easy enough, right?"
He looked around, picking out the driest sticks and snapping them into smaller pieces. After stacking them into a crude heap, he sat back on his heels, scratching his head. "Damn it… I don't even got flint, no matches, nothing. What now, rub sticks together like some caveman?"
With a frustrated groan, he grabbed two twigs and started grinding them together. His arms ached almost immediately. "Tch… screw this, I'll be bones before I see smoke."
He crouched down and pulled the pile of branches closer. Picking out the driest twigs, he snapped them into smaller pieces and stacked them in the shape of a rough nest. From there, he laid thicker sticks around it, forming a small cone.
"Alright… fire. Let's see how this goes."
He grabbed two straight sticks, pressing one against the other. With his hands moving back and forth, he began to grind, the friction building heat. After a while, sweat formed on his forehead. His arms already ached.
"Tch… harder than it looks."
Smoke teased from the wood for a moment before fading. He groaned but kept at it, pushing faster, rougher. Tiny sparks flickered, only to die as quickly as they came.
"Come on… just a little more."
As he twisted the sticks faster and faster, his eyes widened—the dry wood began to smoke. Seeing the faint trail rise, he leaned closer, blowing gently while his hands kept grinding the sticks together.
"alright just a bit more i know i'm really hungry goblin meat wait for me... no wait... im gonna eat you! no that's worst... dang shit anyways here it comes!".
The wood began to catch, faint sparks glowing before flaring into a steady flame. His smile wavered at the edges, relief mixing with pride as the fire finally held. Bit by bit, he fed it more twigs and branches, watching the glow swell into a blaze that pushed back the forest's shadows.
"Alright… that's not too shabby. I actually enjoyed making this little fire. Guess doing things primitive has its worth."
He grabbed the goblin meat and pierced it with sticks—one after another until five skewers were ready. "Well, this should be enough for me.
Gotta taste it first before I—nah… my brain's already thinking about germs and how unhealthy this is."
Shaking his head, he stuck the skewers into the ground, angling them toward the fire. The flames hissed as fat began to drip, the smoke rising with a sharp, bitter stench that clung to the air.
The crackle of the burning wood mixed with the sizzle of meat, and for the first time since the fight, warmth spread across his face.
"Well, well, well… that bad smell's finally fading. Bye-bye, stink."
He leaned closer, eyes narrowing as the green flesh slowly turned golden over the fire. The bitter stench of goblin meat thinned, replaced by the sharp crackle of fat dripping into the flames.
"Now this… this actually looks delicious." A grin tugged at his lips as the skin blistered and crisped. "Alright, sheesh… just a minute more to go, then it's time for dinner."
As the sun dipped lower, the light began to fade, shadows stretching long across the forest. The air cooled, and the world slowly sank into darkness.
"Hmm… starting to get dark, huh? Guess making a fire really was worth it. Saved me a lot of trouble." He scanned the treeline, the dim glow of his fire flickering against the encroaching night.
"Yeah… good call."
Tilting his head, he muttered, "I wonder what time it is?" Raising his left arm, he tapped the interface.
"Time check."
A sharp chime echoed, followed by a glowing display that hovered above his arm.
-
[SYSTEM]
Time Log Updated
World Time: 6:28:02 PM Cycle: Night
-
"Hm, hm… looking at the time, it's almost dawn. Tomorrow's the day I finally start my adventure." He grinned, a small giggle slipping out as excitement for the journey ahead sparked in his chest.
His eyes drifted to the cooked goblin meat. He picked up the first skewer and gave it a cautious sniff.
"Huh… smells kinda like fish. Well, time to dig in."
The scent clung sharp in his nose, but hunger won over hesitation. He sank his teeth in, crunching through the charred skin, chewing, munching, tearing the meat down to the bone.
With each bite, the odd taste grew familiar. He tossed the empty stick aside, reaching for another, devouring it without pause.
"Not half bad… kinda feels like camping out here, roasting fish by a fire, haha—"
Before he could finish the thought, a sharp chime cut through the air. A glowing display popped up before his eyes.
-
[SYSTEM]
Achievement unlocked! [Kindler of Sparks]
Effect applied: Fire-based skills or survival methods are learned faster.
-
He stared at the glowing display, curiosity tugging at him. His mind drifted deeper as the fire crackled by his side.
"Hmm… seems like whenever I do something—whether simple or hard—I end up achieving something. Almost like… feats."
Crossing his arms, he leaned back and tilted his head, slipping into a thinking posture. The firelight flickered across his face as he kept staring into the night, wondering silently what the system was truly capable of.
He stayed like that for a long while, thoughts circling, questions piling up. What exactly could the system do? How far could it go?...