“Let us speak of this later. I believe I just heard another voice. Leaf, take Mushroom and go see what’s happening—someone may need our help.”

  Glenn pointed toward the direction of the faint scream, certain he had not misheard.

  “Alright, we’ll go right away.” Leaf didn’t stop to question; in an instant she transformed into a bird, seized Mushroom by the arm, and soared toward the place Glenn indicated.

  Once they were gone, Glenn dropped the goblin he had been holding. The Flame Fang wrapped around his wrist shifted, returning to its true form. Under the wide-eyed, trembling gazes of the goblins sprawled helplessly on the ground, dragonfire surged forth and consumed them.

  Meanwhile, Leaf’s bird form sliced swiftly through the air. She slipped past a dense wall of foliage—only to see the source of the scream at last.

  But the man was already dead.

  A brown-haired fellow, drenched in blood. Several goblins were hacking pieces of flesh from his body with their crude blades. The encampment was vast; the gruesome spectacle was not unique. Corpses bound to wooden racks dotted the place—of many races, though humans dominated.

  The girls had never witnessed anything so horrifying. They crashed to the ground in terror.

  Glenn had sent them away to spare them from watching him execute the earlier goblins. He never expected it would instead expose them to something far more nightmarish.

  The sound of their fall drew the goblins’ attention. Seeing a large bird fall, and then two human children on the ground, the creatures lit up with savage delight and began chattering as they approached.

  The shock of the earlier scene still pulsed through the girls’ minds; they remained frozen, oblivious to the danger. Only when the goblins loomed directly before them did fear finally return. Leaf tried to summon a spell—but the incantation she knew so well refused to form in her mind.

  A filthy hand reached for them.

  A massive hand struck first.

  The goblins burst into mangled pulp.

  Glenn lifted the two girls and held them close.

  “I… I was just scared,” Leaf murmured, her face still pale, yet unwilling to let Glenn think she was useless.

  Seeing that neither girl seemed on the brink of trauma, Glenn silently exhaled in relief. Children of ten, it seemed, possessed far stronger hearts than he had assumed.

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  He looked at the mutilated corpse, then at the gathering goblins.

  “Do you want to close your eyes?” he asked softly.

  Leaf nodded at once. “Teacher always told us tales of his adventures—I admired him so much. But right now… I really feel sick.”

  Mushroom didn’t speak, only nodded slightly.

  “Then stand farther back. Cover your ears. And whatever you do, don’t look this way. It will give you nightmares.”

  Glenn strode toward the assembled goblin tribe. He intended to see whether he could annihilate them without transforming.

  A heavily armored goblin shoved aside its companions and swaggered to the front. It barked at the goblins behind it, then turned toward Glenn with a cruel grin, fingers brushing the skull of a human child hanging from its belt—a grim trophy among many.

  A deliberate provocation.

  Glenn’s eyes narrowed; a cold smile curved his lips. He lunged.

  The armored goblin had been ready. Its taunt had been a calculated lure. It prided itself on its might; countless human warriors who fancied themselves skilled had died beneath its blows. Glenn, the smallest human opponent it had ever encountered, looked especially insignificant.

  But the instant Glenn released his strength, the goblin realized its mistake.

  It barely raised its reinforced shield before a shriek of tearing metal rang out. The supposedly indestructible shield split clean in half.

  Before the creature could react, Glenn seized it—one hand clamped upon its shoulder, the other gripping its leg. No matter how it thrashed, it could not break free.

  The remaining goblins hesitated, uncertain whether to charge—until a sight that froze their souls unfolded before them.

  Their once-invincible chieftain was torn apart alive.

  It's despairing screams echoed as it's limbs were ripped from its body, gore spraying across the earth.

  Terror swept through the tribe. Some goblins collapsed on the spot; others shoved desperately backward. They had seen bloodshed before, but never a human dismantle a living goblin with his bare hands.

  And their leader’s screams… they felt every shred of his agony themselves.

  The nightmare had only begun. Glenn plunged into their ranks like a ravenous wolf among sheep, unleashing a slaughter unrestrained.

  A few goblins, blood-brave and reckless, rallied others for a charge. It only hastened their deaths.

  Glenn had not fought with such abandon in a long, long time; the release of the Wolfbane’s bloodlust felt intoxicating.

  Without the toxin, he would have grown numb—or nauseated—quickly. But now…

  When silence finally fell, Glenn stood atop a mound of goblin corpses, drenched in blood, gasping for breath.

  This tribe had been the dominant force of the region. Now, one man had erased it.

  The excessive carnage seemed to draw the attention of something else.

  A centipede-shaped phantom flickered across the air. At once, black spirits seeped from the goblin corpses, swirling together into a towering vortex of malice.

  Only Glenn could see them. If he failed to withstand their assault, he would lose his mind—becoming nothing but a raving beast.

  But Glenn merely lifted his head and cast a steady, indifferent glance at the raging shades. His ragged breaths slowed; his expression steadied, as though he were no more than a passerby.

  The result was instantaneous.

  The spirits dissolved before they could even strike.

  Gone? Glenn blinked, still braced for impact. He had only steadied his emotions—and they had vanished. His thoughts turned to the phantom centipede.

  What creature was that? And how could it summon such malevolent spirits?