Chapter 99: Approaching Darkness

Gopuro and Gopuran both turned toward the direction of the howls, tightening their grips on their weapons. Their expressions grew serious.

Something was happening in the distance. And judging by the sheer number of wolves howling at once, it didn’t sound like anything good.

Then...

A deep, rumbling sound echoed through the forest.

The ground trembled beneath their feet, and birds suddenly burst out of the trees, taking flight in enormous flocks. Within moments, the sky was filled with fleeing birds, their wings beating frantically as they scattered in every direction.

What the hell is going on? I asked myself.

Meanwhile, Gopuro frowned.

Another rumble rolled through the distance, louder than before.

Gopuran’s expression stiffened.

"Hey, Puro... do you feel that?"

"Yeah..." Gopuro replied, then suddenly clutched his chest.

"This suffocating feeling..." he muttered. "I don’t like this..."

Hearing that, I immediately checked both of their statuses.

MP. Physical condition. Negative effects.

I went through everything my system could show me, looking for any indication that they’d been affected by some kind of skill or environmental effect.

But...

Nothing.

Their HP was fine. Their MP was fine. There were no abnormal status effects listed. As far as my system was concerned, the two goblins were perfectly healthy.

Then why are they feeling this way?

Before I could investigate any further, a shadow suddenly burst out from between the trees!

"Look out!" Gopuro shouted.

It was a Horned Gray Wolf! A big one!

And it was charging straight toward them!

For a split second, I thought it was about to attack.

Gopuro immediately raised his axe, while Gopuran shifted her stance, ready to intercept the beast if it came any closer.

But then...

The wolf suddenly stumbled.

Its front legs buckled beneath its body, and it crashed face-first into the ground just a few steps away from the two goblins.

"...HUHH?"

Gopuro stared at the fallen beast in confusion.

The wolf struggled to get back up, but its legs seemed barely capable of supporting its own weight. It staggered for a moment before collapsing again.

Then I noticed the blood.

Several deep gashes ran across its body, as though something had slashed it with an enormous, razor-sharp blade. Black blood oozed from the wounds, accompanied by wisps of dark smoke that hissed faintly as they drifted into the air.

That sight was all too familiar...

Wait.

Those wounds...

Before I could examine them more closely, another wolf appeared.

Then another.

And another!

Within moments, several Horned Gray Wolves came rushing out of the forest, sprinting between the trees with their tails tucked between their legs!

Gopuro and Gopuran immediately raised their weapons again, preparing to intercept, expecting the wolves to attack.

However...

The wolves weren’t even looking at them.

They simply ran past the two goblins without so much as a glance in their direction.

Their eyes were wide with terror, their ears flattened against their heads as they whined and whimpered desperately. One nearly tripped over a tree root while trying to flee, while another kept looking back over its shoulder as though something horrible were chasing it.

It was like... they were running for their lives!

"...What the hell?" Gopuran muttered as one wolf after another rushed past them.

Gopuro’s face had gone pale.

Meanwhile, a cold realization was slowly spreading through my mind.

There was only one thing I could think of that would make these wolves behave this way.

One creature capable of inflicting those horrible wounds...

One monster whose very presence could fill an entire area with overwhelming fear.

Spiders.

...

The word surfaced in my mind almost instinctively.

Dark Giant Spiders!

But why now?!

It’s still daylight!

This shouldn’t be happening!

According to everything we’d learned, Dark Giant Spiders were primarily active at night. There was no reason for them to be hunting in the middle of the afternoon!

At least, that was what I’d been counting on.

Another deep rumble shook the forest.

This time, it was accompanied by a distant crashing sound, as though countless trees were being crushed beneath something enormous.

More wolves came rushing past.

Then, from somewhere beyond the trees, came another chorus of desperate howls.

"AWWOOOOOOOO!"

Whatever was happening out there, it was getting closer!

"Gopuro!" I immediately sent him an order through our connection. "Get somewhere high! I need you to see what’s happening!"

"Understood, Big Boss!"

Without hesitation, Gopuro rushed toward the nearest tall tree.

He jumped, caught a low branch, and hauled himself upward with surprising agility. Within seconds, he was climbing higher and higher, using the thick branches as footholds until he reached a spot with a clear view of the surrounding forest.

Then he looked toward the distant horizon.

And through his eyes, I could see it, too.

"...Oh, shit."

Gopuro’s stunned reaction pretty much matched my own.

The moment I saw what lay beyond the trees, my mind went completely blank.

Because in the distance, an enormous sea of dark mist was spreading across the land.

A vast, unnatural blackness that swallowed everything in its path.

Trees disappeared into it.

The ground vanished beneath it.

Even the sunlight seemed to grow weaker wherever the darkness advanced, as though the mist itself were devouring the light.

And its boundary was moving.

Straight toward us.

Oh no....

I knew that darkness. There was absolutely no mistaking it.

It was the dark mist that marked the Cursed Land!

******

As Gopuro jumped down from the tree, I was still in full-blown panic mode.

But panicking wasn’t going to solve anything. I needed to figure out what we should do next, and fast.

The ritual wasn’t finished yet, and all the goblins participating in it were still unconscious. I couldn’t exactly tell them to wake up and run away.

Forcing them awake wasn’t a good idea, either. Who knew what would happen if we interrupted the spell halfway through? For all I knew, we might end up making things even worse.

Besides, the ritual was almost complete.

We’d come this far. I really didn’t want to screw things up now.

So... there was only one thing left to do.

"Puro! Puran! Get ready for battle!!!"

"YES, BIG BOSS!"

The two goblins tightened their grips on their weapons, their eyes fixed on the approaching darkness.

Soon, the last of the fleeing wolves rushed past us.

Then, suddenly, there were no more.

The forest fell strangely quiet, at least for a moment.

Then, instead of howls, I began hearing something else from the direction of the expanding Cursed Land.

Krrrk... krrrk... krrrk...

It was a dry, clicking noise, like countless hard objects tapping against one another.

Then came another sound.

Tik-tik-tik-tik-tik!

Rapid, skittering footsteps echoed through the distance, growing louder with every passing second.

My heart sank.

...They’re coming.