Chapter 13
The Goblin Is Too Big (3)
How did he look to them?
A human riding a bicycle at full speed, armed with a sword and shield, with the title "Gumi's Greatest Swordsman" floating above his head.
"YAAAAAH!"
Even as Yeongwoo charged toward them with a scream, the goblins paid him no attention and continued their meal.
They tore apart their prey's thighs and calves with brute force, ripped open rib cages, and stuffed handfuls of organs into their mouths.
"Damn it...!"
Was this some kind of species solidarity?
Looking at the scattered human limbs rattling across the ground, Yeongwoo felt an indescribable mixture of rage and sorrow.
And soon after, he felt something else.
A deep fear.
The fear born from the realization that humanity's position in the world would never be the same again.
"Come here, you bastards!"
As soon as he reached the massacre site, Yeongwoo practically leaped off his bicycle and drew Early Bird.
One goblin nearest to him moved to block his path.
CRACK!
A shield bash delivered without the slightest hesitation crushed the creature's torso into a grotesque shape.
—Kiiroook!
The goblins that rushed in afterward suffered the same fate.
"You sons of bitches!"
Like a man smashing pottery with a hammer, Yeongwoo beat them down with his shield.
BAM! CRASH!
His Strength had become so overwhelming that everything struck by the shield was flattened.
The iron breastplates and shoulder guards the goblins wore were crushed.
Those foolish enough to raise their arms in retaliation had those arms shattered completely.
Of course, there were many more goblins than him, and some attacks came from the sides with alarming sharpness.
Whenever that happened, Yeongwoo swung Early Bird with all his might.
Even if he couldn't kill them outright, he could force them back.
—Krok!
At this point, even the goblins charging at him began to realize something.
Trying to eat this one human might get all of them killed.
And from that moment onward—
—Kiiik...
—Kiiii...
They hesitated.
Unlike before, when they had competed to attack first, they now began yielding the honor to one another.
The problem was that none of them wanted to charge a human capable of killing them in a single blow.
As a result—
—Kit...
—Kikit...
The battle suddenly stopped.
"Huh...?"
Even Yechan, who had been frantically swinging his spear beside Yeongwoo, noticed the goblins were no longer attacking and stepped back.
"W-What's going on all of a sudden?"
Yeongwoo stared at the edge of his shield, stained blue with goblin blood.
"They're intelligent creatures."
"...What?"
"They hate dying too. Just like us..."
He didn't finish the sentence.
They know fear.
Instead, he burst forward toward the goblins.
WHOOSH!
Leg muscles powered by 150 points of Endurance launched his body forward at terrifying speed.
How fast?
Fast enough that the two-meter-tall goblins panicked and fled.
—KIIIT!
—KIIEEEEK!
"Kill them all! Don't let a single one escape!"
As Yeongwoo shouted through clenched teeth, Yechan—who had been staring blankly at the scene—finally snapped back to reality.
THUD!
Swinging his long spear wildly, he joined the pursuit.
"Y-Yes, sir!"
As he ran, he glanced sideways at Yeongwoo.
The man had leaped into the air and was smashing a goblin's skull from behind with his shield.
To someone unaware of the situation, it almost looked like the goblins were the victims.
"KRAAAAH!"
Yeongwoo's roar seemed to tear the air apart.
Another goblin's head exploded like a watermelon.
CLANG! BOOM!
Every time a goblin collapsed, the heavy armor wrapped around its body created deafening impacts.
And those impacts...
"What was that?"
"Look over there."
"W-What...?"
...attracted other people hiding nearby.
People who had discovered the source of the repeated thunderous crashes and possessed enough courage to approach.
What should they be called?
If one had to give them a name—
They were monster hunters.
People with decent equipment, above-average determination, and reasons worth risking their lives to fight monsters.
A married couple trying to earn enough Karma to cover taxes for their family.
A young girl supporting her grandmother.
An elderly man living alone who hadn't even secured startup funds at the Exchange Station.
In truth, they were mostly the weak and vulnerable.
To kill even one or two goblins, all of them had to attack together.
Yet they remained optimistic.
At least they would be able to pay tomorrow's taxes.
And they were gradually increasing their stats with whatever Karma remained.
Then, unexpectedly—
"KIIYAAAH!"
They encountered a superhuman slaughtering two-meter-tall goblins as if they were insects.
SMASH!
Another one died.
Covered in goblin blood, his eyes tinted blue, Yeongwoo looked around.
Only then did he realize no goblins remained in sight.
"Whew... I guess it's over here for now."
With 150 Endurance, he could clearly feel the difference.
Despite all the fighting, he still had energy to spare.
He felt capable of battling the humans visible in the distance immediately if necessary.
FLASH! FLASH!
The goblin corpses scattered across the ground dissolved into light and began producing crimson coins.
FWOOSH!
Twenty thousand Karma per goblin.
As Yeongwoo collected the coins, he watched the group of people still maintaining a safe distance.
Groups of humans encountered under these circumstances often ended up drawing weapons.
"Mister!"
Yechan came running over, panting heavily.
"You saw them, right?"
"I did. Spend your Karma now. Put it all into Endurance if possible."
As he spoke, Yeongwoo immediately distributed his stat points.
The battle had earned him 200,000 Karma.
Converted into stat points, that meant 200 points.
"Let's put 100 into Durability first, then increase Strength and Perception a bit."
Character: Jeong Myeongwoo07
Strength: 200 (19 + 181)
Endurance: 150 (21 + 129)
Durability: 150 (13 + 137)
Perception: 100 (24 + 76)
The reason he invested in Perception was the Gumi Swordsmanship.
If his Perception increased, perhaps he could follow the sword art's holographic guidance more effectively.
Swoosh.
As soon as the points were distributed, vitality flowed through his entire body.
And in addition—
"...?"
He felt something else.
Something impossible to describe.
"Is it because I raised Perception by fifty points?"
Maybe it was his imagination.
But he felt as though he could sense even the tiniest vibrations around him.
Immersed in that strange sensation, Yeongwoo looked toward the group finally beginning to approach.
From afar they had appeared as a single mass.
Now he could make out each silhouette.
"...Huh?"
The first to react was Yechan, whose eyesight was superior.
"Mister, those people..."
Before he could finish saying they didn't look like bandits, the group made a gesture.
Every one of them raised both hands into the air.
As a result, Yeongwoo and Yechan could clearly see their numbers and equipment.
Seven people.
A husband and wife.
Several kindergarten-aged children.
A limping woman supported by a young girl.
And a skinny old man with a wolf cut hairstyle, his hair so gray it appeared silver.
"Only the couple, the woman, and the old man are armed."
Yeongwoo observed them coldly.
Then he noticed the children standing among the adults.
The kids looked as though they were being punished, holding their hands high.
Swish.
Yeongwoo lowered his sword toward the ground.
Yechan followed suit and planted his spear into the earth.
Only then did the weary group finally relax.
"N-Nice to meet you!"
The husband spoke first.
"Allow us to introduce ourselves—"
"Wait a second. Tell the kids they can lower their hands."
"...Eh? O-Oh, thank you..."
"Not all of you. Just the kids."
Hanulchae Residents' Association
The man explained that they belonged to the residents' association of an apartment complex called Hanulchae.
They had merely been neighbors before.
But after everything happened, they started traveling together.
Armed and hunting goblins as a group.
"How is that even possible?"
Then Yeongwoo looked at the members more closely and understood.
Each of them was a weak survivor.
Perhaps they had decided they stood no chance unless they cooperated.
Either way, it was impressive.
Most people were still running from goblins.
Yet these people were actively fighting for survival.
Still, impressive or not—
"Alright, I understand who you are."
Yeongwoo's voice remained cold.
"But why are you telling me all this?"
The faces of the Hanulchae group darkened once more.
"Well..."
The husband hesitated.
But the next words came from the old man standing quietly in the corner.
"In a world like this, how can people survive unless they help one another?"
Though thin, his frame was unusually sturdy.
His eyes were sharp.
To Yeongwoo, he was the strangest member of the group.
"I know it's shameless to ask, but please travel with us. For the children's sake, if nothing else."
Instead of replying to the old man, Yeongwoo looked at the husband.
"And who is he?"
"He used to work as a security guard at our apartment. Thanks to him, we were able to gather everyone together."
"A security guard...?"
A wolf-cut hairstyle and eyes like a predator.
Yeongwoo unconsciously parted his lips.
Seeing a chance to persuade him, the wife spoke up.
"We've managed to avoid casualties so far, but there have been many close calls. If someone like you traveled with us, at least we wouldn't have to worry about being killed by monsters."
"That may be true."
But what exactly would he gain from it?
Yeongwoo swallowed the rest of his words.
The children were rubbing their tired arms after holding them up so long.
"Damn it. Using kids is unfair."
He distrusted people.
But he couldn't help being soft toward children.
Especially in a world where monsters literally ate humans.
The horrific corpses he had seen earlier flashed through his mind.
"I won't stop you from following me. But the problem is that I'm currently..."
He turned his head while speaking.
He was searching for the red pillar of light.
Because he needed to warn them that his destination was extremely dangerous.
Then—
"...Huh?"
The pillar had moved dramatically.
The red glow was now much clearer.
Which meant the mutant had entered the residential district.
"Uh..."
"That thing..."
The Hanulchae group seemed to have noticed it too.
Because they had killed goblins before, the Epic Quest had activated for them as well.
THUMP! THOOM!
A different kind of impact echoed through the area.
Unlike the sounds made by falling goblins.
Probably footsteps.
THUMP! THOOM!
With every booming step, the red pillar drew closer.
Then finally—
FWAAAAASH!
A colossal object seemed to leap into the sky.
"Ah..."
A sense of foreboding struck Yeongwoo.
He looked upward.
Against the backlight, he saw a dark silhouette.
Massive.
With something resembling a nameplate floating above its head.
"Gumi... City Councilman... Jang Seonbok...?"
That's right.
Yeongwoo was looking at Councilman Jang Seonbok, who had returned as a goblin.