As the bell's toll echoed through the village, Isaac and Marie shared a look. No words were needed. They both knew what had to be done. And so, with a sharp nod at each other, they rushed into the corpse-filled first floor. The small group of goblins inside—including the butchers—hadn't noticed them yet, too distracted by the alarm outside.

Their last mistake.

A Crimson Death shot into the crowd, sinking into the first goblin in its path before detonating and sending thousands of tiny blood blades at the nearby beasts. Screams and cries of pain filled the building, but this was still far from the end.

Marie's water whip wrapped around the neck of one of the remaining goblins. It had no chance to react as she pulled it closer and drove a dagger into its chest. Isaac grinned at the sight and sliced the head off another monster. Three more blocked his path to the exit, but before he could move, a voice rang out behind him.

"Go help the others!" Marie yelled just as another goblin ran into the building. "I got this."

Isaac paused mid-step, hesitating for just a second. Then, he nodded and transformed, streaking toward a hole in the wall. A lone goblin tried to intercept him, but a water whip wrapped around its torso. A moment later, another one cleaved off its head.

Good luck.

A cool breeze ruffled his feathers as he burst into the open sky. He quickly took a survey of his surroundings. Goblins were running everywhere, dozens of them. Most looked like they had no idea what to do, but some moved with purpose, distributing weapons made of stone and bone to their kin. Others, already armed, sprinted toward the sounds of battle.

Not so fast.

Even if Isaac couldn't see Elaine or James from here, that didn't matter for the time being. His job now was to keep the village from regrouping and swarming his team. And fortunately, he had the perfect tool for that.

Not wasting another moment, he flew higher and forced the Freedom mode to activate.

Crimson Flock.

The tsunami of Immortal Mana that flooded his body was instantly yanked out as his ultimate used it as fuel. Small red clouds filled the sky, slowly giving birth to his blood ravens, one after another. Again, he didn't bother counting them and just focused on the link growing within his mind.

Thirty-four. Quite the improvement from the last time he had used this ability. Hopefully, it would be enough.

Three of you, find Marie and assist her. Sacrifice yourself if necessary to protect her, Isaac ordered. The rest? Fly down, kill, distract. Do what you do best.

And so, with this command, his army descended upon the village, their loud cawing drowning out even the alarm bell. The goblins had to abandon their attempts at organizing and face the blood ravens. It was that or die.

Just like that, chaos claimed the battlefield.

Now… let's begin.

With a caw, Isaac dived, Freedom mode deactivating as he did that. Once the ground was within reach, he spread his wings, forced a shift, and landed in a controlled roll. Then, with a light tug on his Viron, Root of Blood fell into his hand and cut through the neck of a goblin close to him.

[Pale Blood Goblin (LVL. 7) slain.]

This notification went ignored as he spun and swung at another beast lying in wait. The goblin raised a crude bone sword in a desperate attempt to block, but it was pointless. Root of Blood cleaved through both weapon and flesh as easily as paper.

Blood splattered across Isaac's face, finally reigniting the Symphony. He grinned as the rhythmic beat filled his ears, the world around him slowing down just a tiny bit. The melody spiked, and without hesitation, he whirled, his free hand catching a goblin's wrist mid-swing.

The creature's yellow eyes went wide as its bone blade clattered to the ground. Before it could try struggling, Isaac plunged the Root into its chest.

Thanks, he sent out to his Origin as the corpse slid to the ground. Taking advantage of the brief moment of peace, he took a look around him.

For the most part, the goblins were distracted by his flock, but some also tried ignoring the birds and running deeper into the village. That just wouldn't do, not on his watch.

In a bust of speed that kicked up the dirt, Isaac lunged toward the first running goblin, transforming mid-air. Blood Draw ignited along his feathered form, the shimmering crimson aura growing stronger with every bit of Viron.

It was no surprise that the goblins in his way stood no chance and exploded in a shower of gore when he punched a clean hole through their bodies. In the end, though, the skill didn't last long, and he transformed again, the Root already in motion as he did.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

While the sword cleaved off an arm of another beast, his other hand raised too, using the gauntlet there to block a swing from the next goblin. The force of the strike rattled his arm but didn't do much more. The armor plate held.

Issac used the monster's momentary surprise to kick it and then drive the Root into its chest.

The grin on his face widened as the Symphony surged through his veins. This was what made it all worth it to him. The thrill of the fight. The Viron burning across his body. For a moment, the image of the human corpses vanished from his mind.

Got to find James and Elaine.

Pushing back his growing bloodlust, Isaac ran past the goblins distracted by his flock and toward the distant noises of battle he had heard before. It wasn't until he rounded the corner of another building and stepped onto a new cracked street that he saw his target. Or, well, targets.

While Elaine moved like a ghost, striking goblins in quick, precise bursts before vanishing into the chaos again, James' situation was much more complicated. He was facing two goblins, only they were far from normal.

Potential Threat: Low-Moderate

To begin with, they towered over the man by at least a head or two. Their massive bulging muscles were also nothing to scoff at. Hell, those things looked more like orcs than goblins. Worse, unlike their scrawny kin, these brutes carried large swords forged from a crude blend of bone, stone, and some scraps of metal.

And then there were their shields…

From the back, they looked just like wood and debris glued together. Yet, once the massive goblins turned a bit, Isaac caught a glimpse of the shield's front.

Skin. Or at least something that he thought was skin. And given what he had seen back in the first building, he was willing to bet he was right.

His eyes narrowed, Symphony of Blood intensifying with the rage bubbling in his veins. He had seen enough. Every monster here had to die. Now.

Yet, before he could take a step toward the towering goblins, his instincts screamed a warning. He spun, sword already rising, but too late. A bone arrow plunged into his side, stopping after just a few inches.

He grimaced, his skills negating most of the pain. A second later, another arrow came flying at him. This time, he was ready and cut it apart with the Root even as his eyes searched for the source.

There!

One of the goblins climbed atop the ruins close by, a white bow in hand. It already had another arrow nocked, ready to fire. It never got a chance, though, as before it could take aim, three blood ravens descended upon the monster and pushed it off the ruins. It fell and never rose again.

Isaac snorted, yanking the arrow from his side even as he was already sprinting toward James and the two big goblins. His regeneration would take care of the injury. He had survived much worse.

Blood to me.

The fuel stored inside Bloodbank surged out, followed by Viron, spilling crimson liquid over the Root. When just a few steps separated him from the first big goblin, he swung. Once. Twice.

Blood Draw ripped into the beast, tearing its back open and exposing the powerful muscles hiding beneath. Those suffered, too, but obviously, even his Sacrifice-enhanced skill couldn't end those monsters in a single hit.

Unsurprising.

What did surprise him, though, was the goblin whirling around to face him, a look of pure rage on its face. Its massacred back apparently did nothing to stop it.

Well then…

Isaac leaned out of the way of a shield bash and called onto more Viron when the goblin's jagged sword came down on him. The Root met it head-on, fueled by another Blood Draw that made the winner of the clash obvious.

The beast stumbled back.

That was all the opening Isaac needed.

In a flash, Isaac slipped past the goblin's faltering guard and again found himself with its back exposed to him. Blood gathered at his fingertips, forming a fresh Crimson Death, which he drove straight into the gaping wound he had carved moments ago.

The spear sank deep into the mangled flesh. Then it detonated, bursting open the goblin's upper body.

[High Pale Blood Goblin (LVL. 11) slain.]

Yet even as remnants of the beast collapsed to the ground, the fight was still far from over. Sure, some goblins froze seeing the death of one of their leaders, but that was exactly the point; it was only one of the two.

Even covered in gore from head to toe, Isaac pulled on half of what remained of his Viron and summoned another Crimson Death above his hand. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he hurled it at the back of the second hulking goblin still fighting James.

The spear exploded on impact, shredding flesh. Still, despite the limited damage, it was enough to earn the goblin's attention and force it to turn. And that would be its final mistake.

No longer forced to defend, James drove both of his transformed arms into the ground. Not even a blink later, massive metal spikes erupted underneath the beast, piercing its legs and lower body. It let out a guttural howl, its sword and shield clattering to the dirt.

Isaac considered finishing the job, but then he spotted Elaine closing in, a deep white glow surrounding her free hand.

Ah… I see.

The woman used one of the weaker goblins like a step and launched herself toward the hulking beast. Another metal spike stopped its attempt at grabbing her mid-air, thus leaving its head exposed.

But Elaine didn't use her rapier to end it, no. Instead, she tossed a large glowing orb into its open mouth. The rest was history, and soon its headless corpse dropped to the ground.

The remaining goblins in the area froze, which was quite unfortunate for them as it gave Marie—who must have finally caught up—free rein. Isaac snorted and turned to Elaine.

"Showing off again?"

The woman huffed. "Look who's talking." She gestured to the few remaining blood ravens and the large corpse without its upper body.

Isaac rolled his eyes. "Someone had to pick up the slack after you alerted the entire village. Don't blame me."

Elaine flushed, ducking her head. "Whatever," she muttered and ran off, joining Marie in the hunt for the remaining goblins.

At the same time, James, having finished inspecting the nearby corpses, strode over to Isaac's side and cleared his throat.

"Just for the record, boss, I had it," he said, grinning.

Isaac chuckled. "Sure you did, buddy. Now back to work. Kill the stragglers."

James mock-saluted, transformed his hands into blades, and sprinted away.

What a mess…

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.