章節 9: The Hunter Gets Hunted

The cave was silent—so silent that Satou could hear his own breathing echoing off the damp walls. But then came the sound.

Footsteps. Ten of them. Heavy, uneven, scraping against the stone floor as they grew closer.

Satou crouched low, pressing his small goblin frame against a jagged wall of rock. His pointed ears twitched as he counted their rhythm. Ten enemies. Maybe more. The scent of sweat, steel, and unwashed skin clung to the air.

And Satou? He was smiling.

Ten goblins. Normally, I'd be a snack. But tonight… Tonight I've got two new skills to test out and the perfect target just came.

The voices carried through the cavern, bouncing off the walls.

"Did he pass through here?" one muttered.

"Yeah, we all saw him come this way," another replied.

"Good. We'll thin our numbers one by one," growled a deeper voice. The leader. Satou could tell from the weight in his tone.

Satou's grin widened in the darkness. So they want to hunt me? Cute. Let's see who's really the predator here.

One goblin wandered too far from the pack, his glowing eyes darting nervously. Satou moved silently, slipping through the shadows like he was part of them.

In a flash, he struck. His fangs pierced the goblin's throat.

"Ghhk—!" The victim gagged, arms flailing weakly before stiffening as the poison spread. Veins darkened across his skin as his body fell limp.

Satou dragged the corpse behind a boulder and whispered with disgust, "Ugh, tastes like spoiled mushrooms. I swear I'll never get used to this."

One down.

The others stopped, sniffing the air.

"Oi… do you smell that?" one asked.

"No," came the reply.

"Exactly. Goblin number 10 always stank. Now it's gone."

Before suspicion could bloom, Satou spat. Mana surged into his throat—

CRACK!

A stone shard shot out like a bullet, smashing into another goblin's skull. The body dropped instantly.

"Over there!"

The group rushed toward the sound.

Satou had already melted into the dark, grinning. Running toward loud noises in a cave? And they call me the dumb goblin.

The goblins shouted, slashing blindly at shadows.

Satou leaned close behind one and whispered, "Boo."

"GRAHH!" The goblin swung wildly, cutting into his own comrade. Both shrieked, collapsing in a tangled mess.

Satou snickered and spat again—

CRACK!

Another shard buried into a chest. Blood sprayed across the floor.

"What's happening?! Where is he?!"

"He's everywhere!"

"No—he's behind you!"

The chaos was delicious. Goblins fought shadows. Some stabbed each other in panic. Satou struck again, fangs sinking into one's leg, poison spreading like wildfire. The victim convulsed and fell.

Four gone. The leader finally roared.

"You think hiding in the darkness will protect you?!"

A massive goblin stepped into view. His glowing red eyes burned in the dark, his jagged axe scraping sparks against the floor. He was taller, stronger, his presence heavy like a beast who had killed dozens of his own kind.

Satou smirked. "Protect me? Nah. They're just making this fun."

The leader roared, swinging his axe in a wide arc. Satou ducked, the blade whistling past his ear and shattering stone. Pebbles rained down from above.

"Whoa! Almost gave me a free haircut!" Satou hissed, darting aside. He spat a stone.

CRACK! The shard bounced uselessly off the leader's armor.

Satou grimaced. "Oh, great. Now I look stupid."

The remaining goblins tried to regroup. Five left besides the leader. Their glowing eyes darted nervously in every direction.

Satou scraped his claws along the cave wall, creating a sharp screech that echoed through the cavern.

"There!" one yelled, rushing toward the noise.

Satou ambushed another from behind, fangs sinking deep. The victim screamed, but only managed to claw at an ally before dropping. The poisoned one twitched violently and collapsed.

"Idiots!" another cursed.

CRACK!

A stone shard buried itself into a throat. Blood sprayed as another fell.

Only three remained now—two warriors and the leader.

"ENOUGH!" the leader's roar shook the cavern. "Kill him!"

The two survivors lunged together. Satou rolled, springing onto one's back. He sank his teeth into its shoulder. The poison spread instantly. The goblin collapsed, twitching.

The last one swung wildly, but Satou spat a shard into its jaw at point-blank range.

CRACK!

The bone shattered, the goblin crumpling with a muffled groan.

Only the leader remained.

Satou crouched low, grinning through his labored breaths. "Looks like it's just you and me now, boss."