The air in the Death Forest seemed to freeze. The five goblins continued to leer, revealing rows of jagged, yellow teeth.
Keyzier and Donovan stood huddled together, their backs pressed against each other. Keyzier could feel Donovan's body trembling violently, yet strangely, he also felt a sense of steadfastness from his friend—a resolve not to run away and leave him behind.
"Don't move, Novan... if we run, they will chase us!" Keyzier whispered, trying to steady himself even though his heart was thumping in his throat.
But the goblins did not wait. The one standing at the front—a stunted creature with a bloated belly and bloodthirsty yellow eyes—began to swing its rusted sword in the air. It let out a piercing screech of command, and in an instant, the encirclement turned into a brutal assault.
"KIIIIIKKKK!"
Two goblins on the left began throwing sharp stones they had scavenged from the forest floor.
Whoosh!
A rock whizzed right past Keyzier's ear, slamming into the tree trunk behind them with a loud thwack.
"Key, look out!" Donovan screamed.
Keyzier tried to dodge, but unfortunately, a fist-sized stone thrown with full force struck his left forehead.
THWACK!
An overwhelming dizziness slammed into Keyzier's consciousness. His vision blurred instantly. In that moment, a warm liquid began to flow from his temple. The blood that first appeared on that dark afternoon originated from the wound on Keyzier's forehead. The thick red blood dripped past his sea-blue eyes, making it look as though he were weeping blood.
Seeing the red liquid flowing down his best friend's face, Donovan's fear seemed to transform into pure rage. As the goblin carrying the rusted sword lunged forward to thrust its weapon at the staggering Keyzier, Donovan moved without a second thought.
He spun his body, pushing Keyzier backward until he fell into a gap between massive tree roots, while he himself used his back as a human shield.
ZRASH!!
The filthy, uneven metal blade tore through the fabric of Donovan's shirt and sliced into the skin of his back. Donovan let out a stifled groan. A searing, burning sting spread through his nerves, yet he remained standing tall in front of Keyzier. He knew that if he fell now, Keyzier would be finished.
"Novan... go! Run! Just leave me here alone!" Keyzier whimpered, struggling to clear his vision.
"No! I won't let them touch you again, let alone leave you here by yourself!" Donovan answered hoarsely. His usually bright red hair now looked dull under the forest dust, and cold sweat mixed with the blood that was beginning to soak his clothes.
The goblin leader seemed delighted to see its prey in pain. It raised its sword once more, preparing for a second, more lethal strike. This time, the attack landed squarely from his shoulder, slashing diagonally across Donovan's back. This second wound was much deeper.
Donovan collapsed to the ground. His strength was spent. He lay on the damp earth, staring at Keyzier with dark purple eyes that were beginning to dim. At that moment, the forest atmosphere—which until then had only been filled with the groans of goblins—exploded with a single sound that shattered the silence.
"NOVAAAAAAAANNNNNNN.....!!!!"
Keyzier screamed with the full strength of his lungs. The cry was not just a call; it was a wail of utter despair that echoed far through the darkness of the forest canopy.
Keyzier's scream was not in vain. A few hundred meters away, a group of adventurers who had just finished a fierce battle against a Weedle Bee (a Rank B monster) halted their tracks.
"Ronan, that's the sound of a child screaming! One o'clock direction!" shouted Oliver, the group's an assassin as well as a scout.
Ronan, a man in silver armor still splattered with green monster ichor, immediately unsheathed his longsword. "A child here? I wouldn't dare doubt your hearing! Come on, we must get there at once!"
Ignoring their exhaustion, the five adventurers dashed like lightning. They arrived exactly as the goblins were preparing to deliver the finishing blow to the two blood-soaked boys.
"Begone, you green filth!" Ronan roared.
With a single swing of his sword imbued with magic energy, three goblins were instantly sliced in two. The rest were killed in seconds by the mage and the assassin. Once the threat vanished, Rin rushed toward Donovan and Keyzier.
"Good grief, this red-haired boy's wounds are severe!" Rin gasped. She knelt immediately, her hands beginning to glow with a warm green light. "Why are there two children in the Death Forest like this? Are they looking for death?"
"Save your questions, Rin! Just save them now!" Ronan ordered while keeping watch on the surroundings.
Rin closed her eyes, channeling all her healing magic. Ten tense minutes passed. Donovan's breathing, which had been ragged, began to steady. The wounds closed, but Rin shook her head dejectedly.
"The wound on this red haired boy's back... that goblin's sword was caked in filth and rust that has already seeped in. I can heal the flesh, but this massive scar will never disappear. It will be a permanent mark on his body for the rest of his life."
While the two boys were fighting for their lives in the depths of the forest, mass panic had broken out in Noive Village. The sun had almost completely set, leaving a haunting orange hue on the horizon.
Sarah, Keyzier's mother, was frantic with worry upon realizing her son had been missing since morning. Meanwhile, Keyown, Keyzier's father, continued to urge the villagers to take action.
"What should we do? Should we carry out a search all the way into the Death Forest?" a village youth asked with a trembling voice.
"But it's almost night! It will be hell in there!" another shouted.
Seeing the villagers' hesitation, the Village Head stepped forward. With a booming voice, he commanded all adult men to take up arms. "Why do you hesitate? That forest has been our hunting ground from the past until now! Quickly, prepare your weapons and your magic!"
Finally, 30 of the toughest men in the village gathered at the gate. They were no longer carrying hoes, but swords, bows, and spears of the finest quality. Now, the entire village looked like seasoned mercenaries or powerful adventurers.
"Speed!"
Simultaneously, they chanted the speed enhancement magic. A thin blue aura enveloped their legs.
"When you are in the forest and find the children, fire off fire or light magic so we can all gather there! Don't anyone do anything stupid!" the Village Head instructed.
"YES, SIR!" they answered in unison.
They bolted into the mouth of the pitch-black Death Forest, cutting through the brush and shouting the names of the two lost friends into the haunting silence of the night.