On the third morning, Ash adjusted the makeshift jacket he had fashioned from some of the thicker cloth he'd found in the cave. He raised a pair of crude binoculars, also salvaged from the cave's odd assortment of items, and continued his observation of the goblin nest.
Over the past two days, he had implemented the first part of his plan. He had hunted several wild animals—rabbits and a couple of small wild boars—and piled their carcasses near the main entrances to the goblin nest.
The goblins, driven by their seemingly insatiable hunger, had greeted these offerings with guttural cheers and immediately set about their gruesome feast.
He also noted their nocturnal habits. Once their bellies were full, most of the goblins would simply collapse and sleep.
However, a small number, usually groups of three to five, would patrol the perimeter of the nest.
This was his opportunity.
"Activate Shadow Sword," he whispered, his voice barely audible.
Ting
[Skill: Shadow Sword.]
[Status: Activated.]
He felt the familiar subtle shift within him, a heightened sense of agility and a fleeting feeling of being slightly out of phase with his surroundings.
He recalled the skill description: it aided in movement and evasion, and... it had a stealth-like quality allowing the user to approach prey unnotices.
'It's not true stealth, not like a Rouge,' he reminded himself. 'It just makes me harder to perceive if they aren't actively looking.' He needed to create a disctraction.
Carefully, silently, he climbed down from the tree and began to move among the ruined buildings, utilizing the shadows and the natural cover.
He gathered the dry leaves and twigs he had collected over the past two days and placed them against the wooden structures, the goblins' crude huts, and the dilapidated fence surrounding the nest.
When he was finished, he took out the matchbox he had found in the cave. One by one, he lit the piles of leaves and twigs, the small flames quickly catching and spreading.
Once the first few fires were burning steadily, he ran back to the safety of his tree and waited.
It wasn't long before the first tendrils of smoke began to curl upwards, followed by the crackling sounds of dry wood catching fire. The flames grew rapidly, licking at the thatched roofs of the ruins.
The sleeping goblins awoke to the smell of smoke and the heat of the flames. Frantic screams and guttural roars erupted from the nest.
They scrambled to escape the burning buildings, but Ash had anticipated this. Under the cover of darkness over the past two nights, he had placed large stones and heavy wooden blocks against the most obvious exits and windows of the huts.
The fire raged, consuming the dry wood of the ruins. The screams of the trapped goblins echoed through the forest, a horrifying symphony of panic and pain.
Ash watched from his perch, his face grim. It was a brutal tactic, but he needed those gemstones. And he needed to get home.
***
The fire crackled in the goblin nest. The smell of burning wood and flesh filled the air.
Ash watched from his hiding spot, feeling guilty. But thinking about his mother, who would be alone, he hardened his heart and waited for the fire to die down.
After about an hour, the fire burned fiercely, then it started to rain. He waited in the tree until the rain stopped. The guilty feeling stayed with him.
He climbed down only after the rain stopped and immediately walked to where the gemstones were. The colorful gemstones were piled on the ground near the center of the nest,
He picked up all of them, and a notification sounded.
Ting
[You have found various gemstones.]
[Will you store it in Inventory?]
[Y/N]
Feeling relieved, Ash pressed 'Y'.
[Inventory:]
[⇒ Blue Gemstones: 8]
[⇒ Red Gemstones: 6]
[⇒ Green Gemstones: 4]
[⇒ White Gemstones: 2]
[Total Gemstones obtained: 20]
'Thirty more gems....' he sighed. He was lucky to get nineteen at once, but he would have to search for the remaining thirty-one one by one.
Suddenly, he heard goblin voices behind him as he put the gemstones in his bag.
Krik! Kriieekkkk!
He immediately turned and saw four goblins running angrily toward him.
'Damn, I forgot there were still some left,' he cursed himself. These were the goblins from patrol before he burned the nest.
He stood facing the charging goblins and drew his sword. He swung his sword at the neck of the first goblin.
Without stopping, he stabbed the second goblin, swung his sword vertically at the third, and then turned his body while swinging his sword at the fourth.
After dealing with all the goblins, he held a pose like a samurai who had just finished opponents. The four goblins fell to the ground and died.
'Shit! This is awesome! I really can move like that,' he thought happily.
With a grin, he sheathed his sword and began searching through the charred ruins, looking for items he could gather.
He found more gemstones and other useful items like a compass. His findings brought the total number of gemstones he had collected to 22.
Then, with a slight whistle, he left the charred goblin lair.
***
Ash walked through the forest again, this time holding his compass open, trying to find which way he should take.
But suddenly, he remembered something and climbed a tree. It had become his habit to climb to the top of a tree to rest or sleep, tying himself to the tree with ropes. He felt trees were safer than the ground.
After reaching a comfortable branch, he tried to call up an important game feature from the system. "Game Map," he muttered softly.
Ting
A notification sounded, and a vast map appeared in front of him. On it, a green dot showed his location.
'How could I forget something this important?' he thought while tracing the map with his finger. He found a place labeled 'Goblin's Nest,' which was not far from his dot.
Then he saw the label 'Show Others' at the top of the map and pressed it. Dozens of red dots appeared on the screen.
'What do the red dots mean,' he asked himself and clicked on one.
Ting
[Player Number: #99284.]
[Profession: Finder.]
'Player? Does that mean they're humans?' he thought anxiously. He looked for the red dot closest to him and clicked on it.
Ting
[Player Number: #43858.]
[Profession: Warrior.]
'Ah, his profession is the same as mine. I'll try going towards him.'
Thinking he might meet another human in this world, he walked eagerly toward the red dot, about a hundred meters away. But when he arrived, he saw no humans.
The red dot's location was a small waterfall in a river, with large rocks. He looked around.
He even stood where the red dot was until his green dot merged with the red one, but he still couldn't find the person. The spot was a large rock right on the riverbank.
Confused, he called out, "Hello, is anyone there?"
Silence. No answer.
He tried again, "Hey, hello, is anyone around?"
Silence.
But soon after, he heard a quiet male voice, "Yeah. I'm here."
The voice came from under the rock where he stood. Bewildered, he looked under the rock and found a hole.
Inside the hole was a middle-aged man with a badly injured leg. The man looked at Ash warily.
"If you want to kill me, go ahead, I can't move anymore," he said.
Ash was surprised. "Why would I kill you?" he asked.
The man looked at him with a mocking gaze, "All the players in this game kill each other for items."
Ash gasped. "I didn't intend to kill anyone," he answered honestly. "In fact, I will try to save you."
"Okay," the man said. "Then go save yourself. I can't walk anymore."
But Ash climbed down the rock and approached the man instead. "I'm not that kind of person. Let me see your wound," he said firmly.
"Hahaha. That's what everyone says when they first come to this game. 'I will save you,' or 'I will not kill you'," the man laughed.
Ash looked at him, slightly annoyed. "We'll see," he said.
He tore the man's pants with the knife he carried. The man had a serious, long wound along his calf. Ash took out his first aid kit and poured antiseptic liquid on the wound.
The man groaned in pain. Ignoring his groans, Ash began to bandage the wound carefully.
However, the man suddenly said, "What if I were the one who tried to kill you?"