Chapter 106: Victory?

Holy shit!

I could hardly believe my eyes.

Seven spiders dead in just a single hit?

That’s so freaking op!

But more importantly...

What the hell just happened to Gopuflammy?

For some reason, Gopuflammy seemed considerably more powerful when wielding the Blazing SkullCleaver than Gopuro or Gopuran had been.

And I wasn’t talking about a small difference, either.

The moment she grabbed that axe, her entire body seemed to transform. Her hair glowed like a blazing flame, strange markings spread across her skin, and even her eyes radiated an intense, fiery light. It was like she had unlocked a more powerful transformation or something...

Wait a minute...

Could she have a Fire mana attribute?!

I immediately recalled the weapon’s description.

[Blazing SkullCleaver]

Special Effect: Grants the holder the skill [Whirling Flame Lv. 1]. When wielded by someone with a Fire mana attribute, all damage output increases by 30%!

...

Hahaha! No wonder!

If Gopuflammy really did possess a Fire mana attribute, that would explain why her attack had been so ridiculously powerful.

But it also raised another question.

How the hell am I supposed to tell which mana attribute someone has?

I started thinking about my goblins.

Gopuflammy had red hair and a rather explosive personality. Gopuberry, on the other hand, had blue hair and was a little shy.

Meaning... could hair color be an indicator of someone’s mana attribute?

If so, perhaps Gopuberry had a Water mana attribute!

And what about Gopuro? He had green hair. Maybe he had a Nature attribute?

Hmm...

But then there was Gopugiga.

WAIT A MINUTE!

Could it be that Gopugiga’s [Brute Strength] skill suppresses his magical abilities so much that it’s made him go bald?!

Kuhahahaha!

...

Okay, that was probably the most ridiculous theory I’d come up with all day.

Still, I couldn’t help laughing at the image in my head.

Sorry, Giga. I promise I’ll investigate your shiny head properly someday.

Anyway... I had more important things to worry about right now.

Of the original twelve Dark Giant Spiders, nine had already been killed.

That left only three.

And with my goblins working together this well, dealing with the remaining monsters shouldn’t be too difficult.

Sure enough, the battle was already turning in our favor.

Gopugiga was holding two spiders back almost entirely by himself. He used his massive shield to block their attacks, occasionally shoving them away whenever they got too close.

CLANG! BOOM! CLANG!

The two monsters desperately tried to get past him, but my best tanker refused to give them an inch.

Meanwhile, my other goblins had surrounded the final spider.

Gopuro attacked from the front, keeping it occupied with quick sword strikes, while Gopuran and Gopuflammy struck from opposite sides. Gopushadow darted in and out of its reach, repeatedly slashing at the same wounds to maximize his damage.

And, of course, Gopuberry kept firing arrows from a safe distance.

FWIP! FWIP!

Each arrow found its mark, further weakening the already injured monster.

It didn’t take long for the spider to start falling behind. It could barely keep up with the constant attacks coming from every direction.

KRRRAAASH!

Gopuflammy’s hammer smashed into its side, sending the enormous creature crashing to the ground.

Before it could get back up, Gopuro and Gopuran rushed forward and delivered several finishing strikes.

KIEEEEEEEEK!

The spider’s legs twitched violently.

Then, at last...

It stopped moving.

"Excellent! Now there are only two left!"

With both remaining spiders already injured, my goblins wasted no time finishing them off.

Gopugiga shoved one backward with his shield, creating just enough space for Gopuflammy to swing her hammer.

BOOOOM!!!

The weapon came crashing down on the spider’s head.

Meanwhile, Gopuro and Gopuran worked together against the other monster, dodging its desperate counterattacks before striking at its exposed body.

Slash!

CLANG!

BOOM!

It was over in another ten seconds or so.

Both spiders fell, their enormous bodies hitting the ground with heavy thuds.

...

Alright! We did it!

I was practically ready to celebrate.

Twelve Dark Giant Spiders! My goblins had managed to defeat every single one through teamwork and some surprisingly clever tactics!

Sure, Gopuflammy’s ridiculous firepower had played a huge role in our victory, but the others deserved plenty of credit, too. They’d covered one another’s weaknesses, adapted to the situation, and made the most of every opening.

Even though this was probably their first time fighting together, everyone had done it so well.

Unfortunately...

My celebration didn’t last long.

Because soon...

RUMBLEEEEEEE!!!

The ground suddenly began trembling again.

...

Tch. Seriously?

"Another wave already?" I muttered before quickly issuing another order. "EVERYONE! FALL BACK! REGROUP!"

"YES, BIG BOSS!"

All six goblins responded in unison.

Within moments, they had regrouped and formed a defensive line, their weapons ready.

The rumbling grew louder.

Closer.

Closer...

The sound of countless legs scraping against the ground echoed through the forest, accompanied by the horrible clicking of mandibles.

Krrt... krrt... krrt...

My goblins tightened their grips on their weapons. Sweat covered their faces, and their breathing was heavy.

They’d already spent a considerable amount of mana fighting the previous waves. Most of them were running dangerously low.

The only one who might still have enough mana to use [Whirling Flame] again was Gopushadow. Even then, I doubted his damage output would match Gopuflammy’s, or even Gopuro’s, especially with the Blazing SkullCleaver.

And after that...

Well, we’d be in serious trouble.

Still, if push came to shove, they could always activate the [Enraged] skill.

But after that...

I really didn’t want to think about it.

Yeah... worst-case scenario, I’ll activate Enraged and have everyone get the fuck out of there.

Losing the chieftain would be a shame, but at least I’d managed to save more than twenty goblins. That was already something, right?

Besides, I couldn’t afford to lose any of my Super Forest Goblins at this point. Not a single one.

....

So, how many are coming this time?

Last time, there had been twelve spiders.

Don’t tell me... am I going to have to deal with twenty-four of them now?!

Kakaka...

That would be a bit much.

Even with my goblins fighting at their best, I wasn’t confident we could handle another twenty-four spiders. Not when everyone was already exhausted and running low on mana.

Yeah... things are about to get really ugly.

But when the source of the rumbling finally emerged from the darkness, I realized I’d been worrying about the wrong thing.

I was wrong.

There weren’t twenty-four spiders.

There weren’t even twelve.

There was just...

One.

*****

BOOOOOOM!!!

A gigantic shadow suddenly dropped from above and crashed into the clearing!

The ground exploded beneath its weight, sending dirt, rocks, and shattered roots flying in every direction.

A massive crater formed where the creature landed!

The shock wave swept across the clearing, making my goblins stumble. Even Gopugiga nearly lost his balance, slamming his shield against the ground to keep himself upright.

...

Holy mother....

WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!