Choice

Larry's miserable state filled Leo with even greater terror. Ignoring his injured thigh, he forced himself to his feet and staggered forward.

The Mutated Goblin was in no hurry. It brought its club down again, savoring the sight of Larry's twisted face. Only after he passed out did it sling the bloodied spiked club over its shoulder once more and stride toward Leo.

The farce was over. Next, it was time for a hearty meal, then to continue its breeding work.

Wounded, Leo could not get far at all. It did not even need to run; strolling after him was enough to quickly bring it to his back.

Leo could feel the heavy footsteps behind him, but he did not dare or want to turn around. It was as though, if he did not look, what came next would not happen.

Yet deceiving himself was nothing more than laughable psychological comfort. The heavy club that had struck Larry moments ago finally came down, effortlessly smashing Leo's head apart.

...At that very instant, a blade suddenly flew in from the side. At the moment Mutated Goblin Zaton was at his proudest and most relaxed, it accurately pierced his eye socket.

"Roar—!"

It let out an angry roar and instinctively covered the wound. A figure flashed past the corner of its remaining intact right eye.

"Slash!"

After lying in wait in the dark for so long, Lin Mo had finally seized the perfect opportunity. The instant he threw Raine's broken blade, he rushed after it at top speed and, before the Mutated Goblin could react, swung his sword.

The fierce Slash struck the eye widened by pain and rage with perfect precision, splitting it down the middle and cleaving it in two!

Using his forward momentum, Lin Mo rolled across the ground, evading its reflexive counterattack. He then quickly retreated more than ten meters, panting heavily, his entire back soaked in cold sweat.

Though the attack had seemed smooth and effortless, it had in fact gone through countless rehearsals and inner struggles. Only after confirming that the opponent was less agile than he was, that his odds of success were high, and that he would likely be able to escape even if he failed, had he finally found the courage to strike decisively at the best moment.

The facts proved that he had won the gamble.

Everything had gone exactly as he had rehearsed. The monster before him had lost both eyes and become blind.

Watching Mutated Goblin Zaton roar endlessly, charge about wildly, and rage helplessly, Lin Mo finally smiled. Now, the offense and defense had switched!

For most creatures, vision was extremely important.

Especially in battle—without sight, it was difficult to judge an enemy's position, making both attack and defense hard to sustain. More importantly, being unable to determine one's surroundings also placed tremendous psychological pressure on the mind.

That was exactly Zaton's situation now. Lin Mo did not need to do anything at all; Zaton would keep wildly swinging his weapon in paranoia, wasting his own strength.

Lin Mo slowly calmed his breathing. Watching Zaton flail about before beginning to pant, he casually picked up a stone and threw it.

The sound of something slicing through the air came from the side. Zaton hurriedly swung his club at it, once again engaging in a battle of wits with empty air.

Lin Mo repeated the trick, continuing to use the same method. Every time, the big fellow reacted instinctively. Before long, he was so exhausted that he could barely lift his arms.

"Damn... little... bug... I'll... kill you..."

With almost none of his stamina left, Zaton did not even have much strength to make threats. In the end, he simply sat down on the ground and refused to fall for it again, letting Lin Mo pelt him with stones.

Once, twice, three times...

A sharp glint flashed through Lin Mo's eyes. The next moment, the blade in his hand shot toward the Mutated Goblin's chest.

Zaton remained seated, seemingly unaware of it.

"Roar—!"

Yet just as the blade was about to hit, he suddenly roared and sprang up in an instant, knocking the incoming sword away. Then he swung his spiked club and smashed it heavily toward...

The empty air in front of him.

Lin Mo sneered. He was not foolish enough to risk getting close himself. He had merely picked up Larry's weapon and thrown it over.

"Damn... you deserve to die!"

Furious, Zaton even spoke more smoothly now. He wanted nothing more than to smash Lin Mo's head apart with one blow.

But no matter how enraged he was, there was no way he could so much as touch Lin Mo.

Lin Mo picked up Leo's weapon and threw it at him. Zaton straightforwardly fell for it again, smashing the tree trunk before him into splinters.

Lin Mo took the opportunity to circle around and retrieve Larry's weapon that he had thrown earlier. He even took a running start and hurled it like a javelin.

"Squelch—!"

This time, the blade finally struck Zaton in the back. Though it did not hit a vital point, it truly pierced into Zaton's abdominal cavity, and blood immediately flowed from the wound.

The pain made Zaton even more frantic. He knew that if he could not catch that little bug who only knew how to ambush him, he would soon bleed to death.

But Lin Mo gave him no chance at all. He always kept a safe distance, even entering Stealth to continually harass him. Then, seizing an opportunity, he picked up Leo's weapon and sent it into Zaton's chest as well.

Zaton had no strength left. The Mutated Goblin who had been so arrogant moments ago was now covered in blood, leaning against a tree in utter disarray. Even his breathing had become extremely faint.

He could no longer even lift his own weapon. The excessive blood loss had begun to cloud his consciousness, but even so, that damned little bug still did not come forward to give him a quick death. Instead, it kept picking up stones from the ground and smashing them into his forehead.

Only after battering Zaton into a "pig's head" and making sure he had absolutely no ability to fight back did Lin Mo tighten his grip on his blade, step forward swiftly, and swing his sword, cutting off the Mutated Goblin's head.

Slash proficiency +5

Stealth proficiency +5

Five proficiency points?

Lin Mo paused. It seemed that killing different magical creatures granted different amounts of proficiency.

That made sense. Challenging stronger opponents brought greater rewards.

But compared to that, he would rather deal with Goblins that posed little threat and use them to grind skill proficiency.

A harrowing battle had finally come to an end, and Lin Mo had claimed the final victory.

But of the original five-person team, only he remained.

He glanced at Leo's corpse, then at Larry, who had been unconscious for a long time and had likely already breathed his last. Finally, he turned his gaze toward a tree not far away, where Raine's corpse lay silently.

Beside him was the scarred girl.

Lin Mo slowly walked over and crouched in front of her, looking at the tear tracks that had already dried on her face and her hollow eyes.

"Thank you."

The girl spoke softly. She had watched that damned monster fall and seen its desperate struggle before death. Just like her parents, she had been kidnapped here with them, spent two agonizing days in that pitch-black cave, watched the Goblins violate her, and finally watched them brutally murder her parents in front of her yesterday evening...

Yet there was no satisfaction at having her great vengeance avenged. She could barely even feel grief anymore. All that remained was a peace as still as water.

Lin Mo extended his hand to the girl. She gently shook her head, breathing quietly and steadily.

The blood-soaked air filled her lungs, carrying a faint scent of green grass. She greedily took a deep breath, and her expression froze in that instant.

...She drew the dagger tied to Raine's boot and slowly but resolutely drove it into her own chest.

The instant pain struck, a trace of relief seemed to flash through her eyes. Using the last of her strength, the girl embraced her family beside her. Leaning against Raine's shoulder, she looked toward the warm sunlight at the horizon.

The glaring sunlight made her narrow her eyes. Sparse birdsong drifted through the woods, and a gentle breeze brushed across her cheek, just as it had beneath the shade of the trees that afternoon years ago, when they had leaned against one another and dreamed of the future...

Please bookmark, vote, and send Monthly votes. I'm begging you all!