Dian observed the goblins and began checking their status.
"Two level 1 goblins, two level 2 goblins, and a level 4 goblin," he whispered to Laura. "The level 4 goblin has a skill called Rush, which makes it move faster for a while, so be careful when facing it later."
Laura nodded in response. She tightened her grip on the club and prepared herself for the fight.
"Wait until they get closer to us. I'll use my skill to distract them first."
Laura knew about Shadow Whisper, Dian's skill, which was very effective against groups of enemies. Though she had never seen the skill in action, Dian's description had convinced her that it was quite formidable.
They continued to lie low for a few more minutes.
Then—
When the goblins came within range, Dian immediately activated his skill.
Suddenly, a chill wind swept through the leaves.
The shadows of the trees deepened.
Ghostly whispers echoed from afar.
Since Laura was not the target of the skill, she felt only slight awe and surprise at the sudden change; the shadows even felt soothing to her.
But for the goblins, it was a nightmare. They began looking around aimlessly, their pupils unfocused. Some appeared terrified, while others looked angry or confused.
Before long, their formation crumbled.
"Let's go!" said Dian as he blended into the shadows and rushed forward.
Seeing this, Laura took her club and approached one of the weaker goblins.
"Haa!"
She raised the club high and then swung it downward, striking the goblin's face.
*Crack!*
She could clearly hear and feel the sound and sensation of breaking bones from her attack. It unnerved her slightly, but recalling her determination, she steeled herself and swung the club down again to finish off the goblin.
[You have successfully killed Goblin Level 1. Gaining +1 EXP and +2 copper coins as a reward.]
Only after receiving the notification did Laura move on to her next target.
She swung her club at the side of the nearest goblin's head, causing it to lose its balance. As she looked around, dazed and confused, she brought her club down again, delivering over 60 physical damage and depleting its remaining HP.
[You have successfully killed Goblin Level 1. Gaining +1 EXP and +2 copper coins as a reward.]
She looked up, ready to charge toward her next target, when she realized there were no standing goblins left. Dian had finished the rest. He even leveled up.
A faint light surrounded him as he felt a strange and mysterious power enter his body.
He quickly allocated the stat points he received to increase his stats: three points each for Constitution and Agility, and one point for Endurance.
Since Laura said she would focus on ranged attacks, he decided to concentrate on enhancing his close-combat abilities.
"You leveled up?" Laura asked.
"Yeah, I'm level 4 now," Dian replied.
"How was your first battle experience?"
As soon as she heard his question, Laura's complexion visibly paled. She recalled the sensation of crushing her enemies. She raised a hand to cover her mouth without even realizing it.
"Are you okay?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.
She snapped back to reality and waved her hand, offering a smile to show that she was fine.
"I'm just a little... surprised," she mumbled.
Dian felt relieved when he saw her smile. He tapped her shoulder, shifting her focus away from her first battle experience, which could hardly be described as pleasant.
He walked toward a tree a bit further from where the goblins' corpses lay scattered, signaling for her to follow.
Laura followed him as he sat down on the ground beneath the tree.
"Let's take some rest before we continue," he suggested.
Though she still couldn't forget the sensation of crushing bones, Laura felt warmth in her chest seeing how her boyfriend picked up on her feelings and took the initiative to cheer her up.
With him by her side, she could view the experience as an opportunity for growth rather than something traumatizing.
She sighed and sat down as well.
They decided to take a break for a while before heading deeper into the forest.
...
—Two hours later—
[You have successfully killed Goblin Level 1. Gaining +1 EXP and +2 copper coins as a reward.]
[You have successfully killed Goblin Level 3. Gaining +3 EXP and +4 copper coins as a reward.]
[You have successfully killed Goblin Level 2. Gaining +2 EXP and +3 copper coins as a reward.]
[You have successfully killed Goblin Level 5. Gaining +7 EXP and +10 copper coins as a reward.]
A steady stream of killing notifications rang in Dian and Laura's minds as a pile of ten goblin corpses lay on the ground before them.
This was their seventh group of goblins they had defeated that day.
As a result of the hunt until now, Dian had obtained four additional drop items from these little green creatures.
[Item: Bone Necklace]
[Tier: Rare]
[Type: Accessory]
[Description: A necklace imbued with the blessing of a Goblin shaman. Gifted to one of his strongest subordinates. +5 Intelligence, +2 Magic, +10% chance of critical damage.]
[Item: Rusty Sword]
[Tier: Common]
[Type: Weapon]
[Description: An old sword left behind by an adventurer. Used and cherished by a Goblin, it was always called its fated weapon. Rusty but still sharp. +10% Physical Damage, +Sharp level 1.]
[Item: Stone]
[Tier: Common]
[Type: Ingredient]
[Description: A normal pebble that can be found anywhere.]
[Item: Rush]
[Tier: Rare]
[Type: Skill Book]
[Description: A book that contains the essence of the Skill: Rush. Anyone who reads this book will learn the skill. Single use only.]
All the items were usable, especially the Bone Necklace and Rush... except the Stone. Dian immediately discarded the Stone right after he received it.
He gave the Bone Necklace and the Rush skill book to Laura, who was undeniably weaker than him, to enhance her power and survival ability. This left him with only the Rusty Sword, which was actually perfect for him. While his punches could deal over 300 physical damage to the goblins, it was painful to fist-fight something to death. With a weapon, he could also utilize his skill, Blessed by Weapons, more effectively.
Laura immediately put on the Bone Necklace. She now looked somewhat wild with the necklace made of bones and fangs.
Noticing Dian's amused expression, Laura shot him a sharp look.
"What?" she asked coldly.
"N-no... Nothing..." Dian turned his face away, his shoulders shaking as he tried to suppress a laugh.
Sighing exasperatedly, Laura returned her focus to the book in her hands. Dian had said that if she read this book, she would learn a new skill.
She was puzzled about where Dian had obtained this book. The other items made sense since she had seen them on the goblins before they appeared in Dian's hands. But the book? Which goblin had a book? Were they even intelligent enough to carry a book with them?
Dian had mentioned that all these items came from drop items, but since she hadn't obtained any drop items despite all their killing, she was still confused about the mechanism behind their appearance.
She examined the book, which had an ancient vibe. It looked old yet majestic and mysterious. An illustration of a running figure adorned the cover.
Laura then began to open the book. To her surprise, she found—
Nothing. There was not a single word on the pages.
As Dian and Laura exchanged confused glances, the book suddenly turned to ashes.
Only then did Laura receive a notification.
"It didn't works?" Dian muttered confusedly.
Laura shook her head.
"No, it worked. Just check my status," she insisted.
At her words, Dian shifted his focus to Laura. A status panel then popped up.
____
[Name: Laura.]
[Level: 2(17/20).]
[Attribute:...]
[Race: Human.]
[Constitution: 5]
[Agility: 5]
[Dexterity: 5]
[Endurance: 5]
[Intelegence: 15(+5)]
[Sense: 10]
[Magic: 12(+2)]
[Money:]
- Copper coins: 36
- Dollar: 0
[Stat point: 5]
[Skill point: 1]
[Skills:]
•{Active}
- Ice Enhancement(E)
- Rush (E)
•{Passive}
- Bless of wind (D)
- Focus (D)
[Title:]
- The First Adored One.
**[Detailed Advanced Status...]**
_____