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I listened to Adela explain about goblins and stepped outside the Empire.

I moved to a forest located a bit away from the Empire.

There were all sorts of monsters there, including goblins.

True to being the bottom-tier monsters in the fantasy realm, while other monsters lived deep in the woods, goblins made their homes at the forest’s edge.

“Ugh, can’t see anything.”

But what exactly can’t I see?

Just when I thought I’d take down some monsters, level up, and try to mess around as an extra—

Finding a goblin turned out to be surprisingly difficult.

It’s not like this world is solely about hunting goblins; they’re hiding so well that you can barely spot them.

Well, that’s only natural.

If they’re weak enough to live at the edge of the forest, they’re definitely a target for other adventurers, and being close to the Empire, if their numbers grow too large, the Empire would take care of them.

So, of course, they’d be hiding, and since the adventurer entrance exam requires bringing back three goblin ears, you can’t expect the goblins to be sitting pretty.

“Moreover, it’s morning…”

True to being nocturnal, there was no sign of goblins to be found at this time.

As someone who was a regular person just hours ago, I wouldn’t know how to find a goblin’s traces.

Now, all I see around are wild animals like rabbits and squirrels.

“This is why novels are easier.”

If this were a novel, a sentence like ‘I wandered around the forest and encountered a goblin!’ would have me face-to-face with one in no time.

“Then again, I’m not the protagonist, am I?”

I wonder what the protagonist is doing right now.

If following the story, they’re probably doing some favorability boosting disguised as theoretical classes with the heroine.

Sitting next to the second-best, endlessly chattering and getting weirdly bonded with them.

“Tsk tsk. Poor heroine.”

Honestly, a protagonist’s harem? Not jealous at all.

I mean, what kind of mess is it when there’s one protagonist who breaks all barriers, deals with monster invasions at the academy, and suddenly demons pop up, leading to named monsters showing up and causing fatalities?

Who would envy that?

The academy students may not know, but knowing the story, I see the extras at the academy as potential suicides.

The heroine is also bound to get dragged into it just for being the heroine.

“Honestly, if this were a normal person, they’d ditch the protagonist and run away, harem or not.”

You know that one guy whose body shrinks but his head stays the same size?

I seriously can’t figure out why he hangs around with them.

Lost in those thoughts while walking.

-Kieek!

I heard the sound of a goblin from beyond the bushes.

It was unmistakable, like the goblins I’d seen in games and anime; the sound was clear enough that it was impossible to mistake it.

It goes “Kieek!!”, but it’s just the same as “Goblin!!”.

How could I possibly ignore the fact that they’re practically delivering themselves to me, asking to be killed?

Finally, after coming to this otherworld, I was about to see my first monster; my heart raced as I stealthily slipped into the bushes where the sound came from.

Amidst the branches and leaves, a shape began to come into view.

My sight cleared little by little, and soon, I laid eyes on the monster I had longed to see.

‘Oh!’

Arms and legs bizarrely long in proportion to its upper body.

Ears elongated, different from those of a normal person.

From the big nose that you’d only find on a witch in a fairytale sprouted small, bumpy protrusions.

A typical fantasy goblin with green skin that screamed it wasn’t human.

‘Oooh!!’

This was on a whole other level compared to 3D or 4D.

Not only was it right in front of me, but it was moving according to its own will, a real monster I could actually touch.

“Huff. Huff.”

Should I kill it?

Should I?

Having a monster right in front of me and doing nothing would not sit well with me.

Three goblins were dragging a dead boar.

They seemed like they were heading back to their den.

Right now, it’s either take down these three goblins or follow them to their den and raid it.

‘Of course, it’s the latter!’

I’ll put off the killing for now and follow them.

I had to be the ultimate gains-chaser.

Not only the gains, but the latter seemed much more fun.

Decided, I carefully trailed the goblins heading toward their den.

The foolish things had no idea they were being followed and just kept their eyes ahead.

After following for about ten minutes, I arrived at a secluded part of the woods, where a large hole resembling a cave entrance caught my eye.

‘Confirmed.’

Now that I had confirmed the location, it was time to strike.

If I went in too close, the ones inside the den might all come rushing out.

‘If that happens, I won’t have anything left to enjoy.’

Moistening my lips with my tongue, I swiftly drew the knife hanging at my waist.

And just as I approached the backs of the goblins…

“Wow! Friends!”

I shouted at the goblins from behind.

-Kieek!?

The startled goblins turned around, but—

-Swoosh!

With all my strength in one swing, the head of the goblin dragging the boar fell to the ground.

Realizing their companion’s death too late, the other two goblins lunged at me.

“Too slow.”

True to being the weakest monster, they were incredibly slow.

Seriously, how could they not dodge when both were attacking from the same direction?

I dodged to the side and swung my sword horizontally forward.

“Solar Strike!!!”

With a piercing sound, my sword stabbed into the eye of the goblin.

-Kieeeek!!!

The goblin screamed in agony as I shoved my sword into its eye.

‘Solar Strike is the best.’

Originally a technique that required a flashlight or could only be used by bald heads reflecting sunlight.

But for the greatest physical therapist like me, nothing was impossible.

The only downside was the side effect of losing sight for the rest of its life.

But hey, it was going to die anyway, so who cares?

I swiftly pulled my sword out and stabbed the other eye.

-Keeeeeek!!!!!!!

Now it wasn’t just “Kieek!!”, but “Keeek!!”.

It was like witnessing a demonstration of how painfully someone could scream without anesthesia.

Just after pulling out the sword, the sightless goblin began to flail wildly, so I hastily stepped back.

And then—

-Smack!

-Kieek!!

The blindly swinging club of the goblin hit the head of another goblin nearby.

“Oh, nice shot, boss!”

It must have hit hard because it fell over, blood gushing from its head.

Usually, the ones that can’t see are the most dangerous, and it seems it hit with all its might.

Before it could struggle, I quickly swung my sword to finish it off.

Once again, the head of the goblin dropped to the ground.

If I take the ears now, I’ll complete the exam.

‘But this feels too simple…’

Thinking about whether there was a more delightful way to do this, an idea from an old YouTube short popped into my head.

“Oh. That sounds great.”

I tossed all three goblin heads into my inventory.

The blue panel shimmered, and the goblin heads vanished.

Now all that was left was to head back.

Just as I was about to walk back to the Adventurer’s Guild—

[ Level Up! Check your status! ]

A blue panel suddenly appeared before me.

Curious, I shouted “Status!” and there it was.

[ Information ]

Name: Luke

Gender: Male

Age: 20

Grade: None

Magical Power: 0 / 0

Level: 12

[ Skills ]

Inventory (F)

[ Stats ]

Strength: 10

Agility: 10

Intelligence: 0

Stamina: 10

Stat Points: 2

I had leveled up.

Plus, I had stat points to spare.

“One point per level? What a ridiculous waste.”

What era are we in to only give one point per level?

But considering I gained two levels for taking down three goblins, it was clear that the experience was quite generous.

In that moment, I glanced towards the cave but shook my head.

“No, gotta hold back.”

Delicious things are meant to be saved for later; they’re always tastier that way, aren’t they?

Like a true manly man, I poured all my points into strength and turned back toward the Adventurer’s Guild.

*

Adela worked hard today as usual.

She organized various requests and placed them on the notice board while assisting different adventurers at the reception.

“Adela, do you have time after work today?”

“I’m sorry. I have plans after my shift today.”

An adventurer was hinting his interest toward her.

“Do you know who I am!?”

“Rizan, you seem pretty drunk.”

An adventurer who had been drinking since morning was causing a ruckus.

Amid all that, one particularly strange event stood out.

It was when a student from the academy named Luke came to join the Adventurer’s Guild.

She knew he had dropped out after hearing it from the Guild Master, but it was still quite fascinating.

Such an occurrence was rare in the history of the Guild since its establishment.

In any case, Luke had gone off to take the entrance exam by hunting goblins.

As he was an academy student, his skills were somewhat guaranteed, so she had no real worries about him being taken down by a mere goblin.

‘But it should still take some time.’

That’s what she thought.

Adela had never gone hunting goblins herself, but adventurers often said goblins were surprisingly good at hiding.

It was even said among the higher-ups that now, instead of hunting goblins, other monsters were the new test subjects.

With that in mind, Adela thought it’d be around lunchtime when he returned.

And just as Adela anticipated, Luke returned around lunch.

“I’m so glad you made it back safe.”

Since they were adventurers living a dangerous life fighting monsters, it was customary for receptionists to welcome them back when they returned.

Adela didn’t mind this part at all.

Adventurers are akin to soldiers back on Earth.

Even if they were fighting monsters to survive, they risk their lives for the sake of others, so they naturally deserved respect.

Saying a simple welcome back and wishing for their safety was something she could wholeheartedly offer, and Adela took pride in that.

“Is it always this hard to find goblins?”

“Um… as a receptionist, I don’t know the details, but from what I hear, that’s what adventurers say.”

After answering Luke’s question, she noticed that he was empty-handed.

Typically, one would bring back a monster’s corpse stuffed into a small pouch or some artifact, but it was the opposite for him; he was completely bare-handed.

‘Did he come back because he couldn’t find any…?’

Spatial artifacts are typically expensive and used only by nobles.

If Luke had that, there would’ve been no reason for him to drop out of the academy and become an adventurer; he was likely a commoner.

Given that, he should at least have a pouch, yet he had nothing, so Adela couldn’t help but assume he failed to find any goblins.

‘Being nocturnal and hard to find lately, it must be quite tough to find goblins during the day.’

Providing comfort to adventurers who failed their requests was also part of the receptionist’s job.

“Are you okay, Luke? You can do better next time.”

He wasn’t officially an adventurer yet, but since it seemed likely he’d easily bring one back in the evening, she offered some comforting words.

However, what came back as his response contradicted his empty hands.

“Excuse me? I brought back goblins!”

And before she could ask what he meant, he waved his hand in the air and set down three goblin heads on the reception desk.

“Kyah, kyahhh!!!”

Seeing that, Adela let out a high-pitched scream, and in an instant, all the adventurers’ gazes were fixed on the reception.

And the one who caused this uproar was none other than—

“Alright everyone, it’s time for the goblin dissection show~”

 

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