Morning light washed over the clearing as Atria slowly lifted himself off the ground.
The goblins jolted awake instantly.
"A Atria-sama!"
"You're alive!"
"We thought you would sleep for days!"
Atria pulsed calmly to reassure them.
"I'm fine… thanks to all of you."
He checked his new skills quietly:
Sleep Nullification
Physical Attack Nullification
Useful but not broken.
Exactly what he needed to protect this new tribe.
Rugo, the first goblin he named, stepped forward. He was bigger now, taller than any goblin Atria had ever seen, muscles thick with strength.
"Atria sama… this village is too weak. Our homes are small. Our walls are gone. Monsters will attack again."
Lena followed, holding her staff of healing magic.
"We… want to build a real home. A place strong enough to protect the children."
Atria looked around.
The village was barely more than broken huts and scattered tools.
He knew what he had to do.
"Then let's rebuild it together."
Atria used his slime body to carry logs, stones, and broken planks.
He absorbed small materials to reshape them, then spit them out smoother, cleaner, stronger.
Rugo chopped trees with his enhanced strength.
Baru hammered metal scraps into new tools.
Teka scouted the area for herbs, fruit, and signs of danger.
Lena healed anyone who got hurt.
Slowly, the village began to take shape.
New fences.
Larger homes.
A central gathering place.
Atria didn't command them; he helped them.
And that made the goblins love him even more.
But peace never lasts long.
One night, while the goblins slept peacefully, Atria sensed something.
A presence.
Heavy.
Brutal.
Not divine just strong.
The trees shook.
The ground trembled.
Something large approached the village.
Atria moved to the front gate, slime body glowing faintly.
Leaves rustled.
Branches snapped.
Then it stepped out:
A massive Forest Ogre, easily three times Rugo's size, carrying a club made from an uprooted tree.
Its eyes glowed red with hunger.
Rugo rushed to Atria's side.
"Atria-sama! That thing wiped out two goblin tribes last month… we can't beat it!"
The ogre roared.
Atria stood firm.
He wasn't divine.
He wasn't unstoppable.
He wasn't a god.
But he was their protector.
And he would fight.
The ogre charged.
Atria moved first.
SPLASH.
He wrapped around its arm, dissolving a layer of skin.
The ogre howled and swung its massive club
but the blow simply passed through Atria's body harmlessly.
Physical Attack Nullification activated.
Atria felt a surge inside him, a new instinct, a new skill born from countless battles.
Adaptive Counter
You become temporarily resistant to any attack used against you and gain a matching counter technique.
The ogre swung again a powerful smash.
Atria felt something new awaken.
His slime body hardened
"Counter Smash!"
He launched the stored force back at the ogre.
CRACK
The ogre flew backward, smashing into a tree hard enough to break it.
Rugo stared in awe.
Lena dropped her staff.
Even the children gasped.
Atria slowly rolled forward.
The ogre tried to stand
Atria struck once more.
BOOM.
The forest fell silent.
Forest Ogre defeated
Gained: Ogre Strength Minor, Thick Skin Trait, Impact Resistance.
Atria turned to the goblins, who were all kneeling.
He didn't ask for worship.
But he felt something warm:
They were no longer afraid.
They trusted him.
They believed in him.
A New Title
The system chimed softly:
You have earned the Title: Guardian of the Weak
Effect: Increased respect from low level monsters and demi human races.
Not godly.
Not broken.
Just perfect for who he chose to be.
The guardian of this small, fragile village.
And this was only the beginning.