A chill shot up Izelle’s spine, making his heart freeze in an instant.
‘What’s going on? Why is it suddenly staring at me like that?’ Izelle was filled with doubt and vigilance.
That sudden “Fireball Storm” from Izelle—each shot not worth mentioning on its own, but the astonishing density, bizarre speed, and utterly unnatural casting frequency—
Clearly, it had drawn the utmost attention of a presence on the battlefield.
The Goblin Chieftain, who had remained still all this time.
Its crimson eyes, hidden beneath the shadow of its helmet, locked with deadly precision onto the seemingly flustered, weak-haired boy lurking at the back of the crowd.
A warning, rooted in primal instinct, rang in its mind—this human, who looked the weakest, was radiating an utterly discordant sense of danger. The way he inefficiently channeled that massive amount of mana seemed more like…a disguise?
Or perhaps, it was some deeper, unfathomable manifestation of power. This variable must be eliminated first!
“GRAAAAH—!!!”
A sharp, piercing howl—infused with strange magic—burst from the Goblin Chieftain’s throat.
It finally moved! Its figure flashed forward like a streak of black lightning hugging the ground, so fast a phantom afterimage was left behind. Its target: Izelle!
Raising its bone staff, set with a murky gemstone, it pointed forward—instantly condensing a tightly-packed, dark green bolt of energy brimming with corrosive force, tearing through the air with a foul, nauseating wind as it shot at Izelle!
“Izelle, watch out!” Sarah had been keeping a wary eye on this greatest threat, and the moment the Goblin Chieftain acted, she was already aware. Her face changed dramatically—there was no time to hold back anymore!
“Fifth-Tier Composite Magic—Windrock Bulwark!”
Sarah cried out, hands dancing swiftly, her immense mana surging forth.
In a flash, the ground before Izelle heaved upward. An extraordinarily thick stone wall erupted from the earth, while raging gales swirled around the rock, forming a dual-layered barrier that combined impenetrable defense with slicing, shredding winds!
“Boom!”
The dark green energy bolt smashed violently into the Windrock Bulwark, releasing a deafening roar.
The stone wall shook furiously, its surface eaten away with hissing pits, and the swirling winds were torn open by force. But, just barely, the sudden assault was blocked.
However, the direct clash had left Sarah’s face a shade paler, her eyes brimming with utter shock.
“This power…how is it possible?!” Storms raged within her heart.
That brief collision of energy had let her sense it clearly—the strength that the Goblin Chieftain unleashed had far surpassed the realm of a C-class elite monster, even reaching the threshold of a B-class Lord-tier monster!
Goblin… Lord-tier? This overturned centuries of the Empire’s understanding of monster ecology! An unprecedented mutation!
Seeing its strike blocked, the Goblin Chieftain roared in fury. Abandoning ranged attacks, it dashed around the Windrock Bulwark with ghostly speed, wielding its obviously enchanted bone staff, unleashing a relentless storm of close-quarters attacks at Sarah!
Each swing of the bone staff was not only powerful, but sent whips of shadow and splashes of corrosive energy lashing out, making its attack patterns sinister and ruthless.
Yet Sarah did not panic. As a Fifth-Tier Mage and chief student of Starlight Academy, her combat experience was abundant.
Wind magic bolstered her body, giving her an ethereal, elusive movement as she evaded deadly physical blows. At the same time, she wielded earth magic with equal mastery—sending stone spikes erupting from the ground, conjuring rocky fists to counterattack, fiercely dueling the Goblin Chieftain.
For a while, magical brilliance and shadow energy collided wildly, shockwaves roiling. The aftermath alone kept the ordinary goblins at bay.
But Sarah, having already burned much mana to clear the field earlier, now found herself up against a Lord-tier foe far stronger than expected. She was unable to gain the upper hand—falling into a stalemate.
Just then, as the Goblin Chieftain’s fierce onslaught kept Sarah tied up for a moment, its red eyes flashed with cunning. It feinted, taking a wind spell head-on, leaving a deep gash in its shoulder armor, and used that force to sharply ricochet away, like a cannonball blasting forth—once more charging with astonishing speed toward its original target—Izelle!
This time, the distance was too close, and the speed too great—Sarah could not intervene in time! “Izelle!” she cried out anxiously.
Everyone’s heart leapt to their throats.
Luke and Emma turned pale, desperate to help but far too late.
The bone staff, shrouded in shadow and corrosive power, was about to pierce the seemingly “frozen with fear,” motionless Izelle.
In that hair’s-breadth instant—Izelle moved.
His movements looked…utterly clumsy and ridiculous.
“Waah!” He let out an exaggerated scream, his whole body lurching forward as if he’d slipped or been tripped, stumbling forward in a rolling, crawling mess—just barely dodging the direct stab of the bone staff.
His awkwardness was so laughable, a few watching goblins cackled mockingly.
But how could the Goblin Chieftain’s attack be so easily evaded?
As that strike hit, a cloud of dust erupted.
Izelle took the opportunity to set a magical marker on the Goblin Chieftain.
But the pressure of the bone staff’s swing, combined with its corrosive power, still swept across Izelle’s back while no one was watching.
“Shrrrip—”
His ordinary clothes tore and dissolved in an instant, exposing the skin beneath.
The Goblin Chieftain, ready to chase and tear this annoyingly lucky human to pieces, suddenly saw its crimson pupils shrink to pinpricks!
It saw it clearly! Its own attack—a wave strong enough to rend iron and corrode stone, on par with a Sixth-Tier spell—had hit that human’s back, but hadn’t even left a white scratch!
That human was still there, “panicked” and scrambling forward on all fours, muttering “That was close, that was close,” as if he’d just scraped through death by sheer luck.
But the Goblin Chieftain knew—that was not luck!
That comically clumsy dodge had been timed to the hair’s breadth, perfectly evading the deadliest point of attack.
And that body, able to tank its magical aftershock with no injury at all… This was not a human’s physique!
This was a trap! This human was in disguise!
A chill of absolute, primal dread swept over the Goblin Chieftain.
It didn’t know why the human would hide his strength, but it was certain—if the fight continued, it would be the one to die!
“AWOOOO—!!!”
It didn’t hesitate, letting out a long howl utterly different from its earlier belligerence—now full of terror and intent to flee.
It didn’t dare even glance at Izelle again. Its body shot backward, bone staff waving to command all goblins to retreat.
The goblin horde, still locked in battle, didn’t understand why, but the Chieftain’s orders were absolute. Like a receding tide, they broke off combat and, following their clearly-panicked leader, fled headlong into the depths of the Cassipe Forest—leaving behind a scene of chaos and a crowd left staring at one another.
The battle ended in the most abrupt way imaginable.
Sarah exhaled in relief, but her frown deepened. She hurried to Izelle’s side, asking with concern, “Izelle, are you alright? That was too close just now!”
Her gaze fell on the torn shirt at his back—only to see flawless skin beneath. She froze, surprised.
Amidst the dust, she’d seen nothing.
Yet, under the attack of that Lord-tier goblin, Izelle was completely unharmed?
Was it mere coincidence, or was there a secret about Izelle that she didn’t know…
Izelle, still “startled,” patted his chest and panted, “I-I’m fine, Senior Sarah, just ripped my clothes… scared me to death, I really thought I was done for—good thing I slipped and got lucky…”
Luke and Emma rushed over too, each expressing their shock and relief in a jumble of voices.
No one noticed—the fleeing Goblin Chieftain, before vanishing into the forest, shot one last look back—filled with a fear and wariness beyond words.
It would never forget that human—seemingly weak, but harboring terrifying power within.
And Izelle, while no one was watching, quietly brushed his perfectly unharmed back, finally letting out a sigh of relief inside.
‘That goblin’s intelligence is off the charts—even pulled a second attack. I really wasn’t careful enough. If my [Defense] wasn’t high, wouldn’t that have left me with a hole right through my heart?’
At that moment, Izelle sensed the magic array he’d set at the west gate was triggered.
At the same time, the system’s voice sounded in his mind.
[Detected host has officially encountered a key node of the ‘Era’ main storyline. Now unlocking simplified interaction functions to enhance host’s survival experience in the other world.]
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