Fifty adventurers stood in solemn silence before the gaping maw of the Goblins' Den a black, jagged opening carved into the earth like the sneer of a slumbering beast. Cold wind whispered from within, carrying the stench of blood, rot, and something ancient. The air crackled with dread.
Thump. Thump.
The heartbeat of tension pulsed through the ground, through their boots, into their bones.
This wasn't just another hunt. This was war.
After forming the Adventure Guild there have been many extermination quests before but none like this.
At the front line, three figures stood tall. Jack. James. Emma.
Their expressions were calm, yet their eyes glimmered with the sharp edge of readiness. Every breath they took was measured, every movement precise. They were veterans of pain, survivors of battles where others had fallen.
Crrrk…
Leather armor creaked as swords were checked, bows strung, and spellbooks opened. Some whispered prayers. Others clenched their fists in silence.
Then came the voice deep, resolute, and commanding.
"Listen up!" The call boomed across the crowd, bouncing off the canyon walls like a thunderclap.
Garrek, the Guild's chosen commander, stood tall on a nearby boulder, his silver-plated armor gleaming faintly in the dim light. A scar ran down the left side of his face.
"This cave… is no ordinary hole in the dirt."
His voice was sharp as steel.
"It's a nest. A Den. A festering pit crawling with goblins and worse."
A shiver passed through the ranks.
"We split into units. Formation tactics only. Watch your corners. Protect your mages. Don't act alone."
Fwwp!
Garrek unfurled a weathered map, slapping it down on a stone slab as several squad leaders stepped forward.
He pointed at a winding network of passages scrawled in ink. "Here's our path in. Main tunnel leads straight to the central chamber. We suspect the goblin chief is there. We'll clear the outer burrows first, then converge."
Jack glanced at James and Emma. A silent nod passed between them, no words needed. They were ready.
Somewhere deep within the den… a low growl echoed.
Grrrrrrrhhhhhh…
Something had heard them.
Something was waiting.
---------
Unit Formation
1. Frontline Unit – Warriors, Knights, and Tank-type Ascendants. The shield wall. They lead the charge, hold the line, and absorb the brunt of the goblin assault.
2. Support Unit – Priests and Support Mages. The backbone of the raid. They mend broken bodies, dispel dark magic, and elevate strength with divine blessings.
3. Damage Dealer Unit – Assassins, Battle Mages, and elite melee fighters. The executioners. They strike fast and hard, cutting down enemies before they can overwhelm the front.
4. Ranged Unit – Archers and Long-range Mages. The storm from behind. They rain death with pinpoint precision and suppress the enemy from afar.
---
Jack and Emma moved swiftly into position within the Damage Dealer Unit. Their weapons gleamed Jack's dagger humming with arcane energy, Emma's hands alight with a volatile mix of fire and water elemental energy.
James, ever the wall between chaos and order, stood tall in the Frontline Unit, his sword in one hand and his partner, Ironfang, at his side. The steel-furred beast growled low, fangs glinting in the torchlight.
The plan was in motion.
Step. Step. Step.
The cavern's silence was broken by synchronized footfalls echoing off the rock walls. They entered the Goblin Den.
And the darkness swallowed them.
Flickering torchlight pushed back the black, revealing jagged, wet stone and winding, suffocating tunnels. Strange carvings etched by goblin claws lined the walls, primitive images of blood, war, and something deeper… hungrier.
Clink. Drip.
Water fell in hollow drops. The only warning they'd get.
Then
SKREEEEE!!!
The first wave struck.
Green bodies exploded from cracks and shadows feral, shrieking, eyes glowing like cursed embers. They came in swarms of ferocity over form.
"Frontline, hold!" Garrek's voice cut through the chaos.
BOOM!
Shields slammed into goblin blades with a deafening crash. The Frontline Unit surged forward like a steel tide, halberds sweeping, swords cleaving. James was at the heart of it, calm as stone, brutal as a landslide.
"Ironfang—GO!"
RAAAAAWR!
The beast leapt. Its silver claws gleamed mid-air before they tore through three goblins in a blur. Blood sprayed. Bones cracked. Screams were silenced.
CLANG!
SHINK!
FWOOOOOSH!
Spells exploded. Steel clashed. Arrows whistled overhead.
Behind the front, Jack darted between enemies like a ghost, dagger flashing with every step. Emma channeled her spell, fire coursing through her veins.
"Fire Ball!"
BOOM!
Fire danced from one goblin to another five enemies convulsed and collapsed in smoke.
But the wave wasn't over.
From deeper inside… came a different sound.
Thud… Thud… THUD.
Something bigger was coming.
"Push forward!" James's voice rang like a war drum, steady and commanding. He parried a goblin's rusted dagger with a clang of steel, then slammed his sword into the creature's chest.
CRUNCH!
It dropped without a sound.
Behind him, the Support Unit was in motion swift, precise, and vital.
"Blessing of Vital Grace!" A young priestess' voice rang out, golden light erupting from her hands.
WHOOOM!!
The broken arm of a knight mended in seconds, bones snapping into place with a wet crack. She didn't flinch when there was no time to.
All around her, Recovery Circles pulsed with divine energy, healing slashes, burns, and venom. Buff mages raised their staves high.
"Augment: Iron Body!"
"Fortify Speed!"
A shimmer of power coursed through the frontline. Muscles bulged. Movements sharpened. The tide began to turn.
---
Jack moved like a blur of grace and death in motion. His dagger flickered through the chaos, one slicing, the other parrying. He twisted past a lunging goblin, pivoted low, and drove his blade into its throat.
"Pressure Point Strike!"
FWSSHH!
Flames ignited across his blade, erupting in a scorching arc. Two goblins screamed as the Pyro-infused strike pierced their vitals and dropped them in a heap of burning flesh.
"Jack! On your left!" Emma's voice snapped through the chaos.
Jack ducked instinctively.
THWAP!
A goblin spear whistled past his ear.
BOOOM!
A surge of water slammed into the creature, sending it crashing into a wall with a sickening splat.
Emma stood tall behind him, her hand steaming with residual Hydro energy. Her breathing was calm but her eyes were on fire.
---
From the back, the Ranged Unit held their ground.
THWIP. THWIP. THWIP.
Arrows rained like divine judgment, each shot clean and final. Goblins fell with gurgling gasps, their bodies riddled with shafts.
"Anemo Pierce!"
FWOOOOOSH!
A razor-thin gust of compressed wind shot forward, slicing through the air like a whip.
SCHICK!
Three goblins were thrown back, limbs severed mid-scream.
---
The first wave crumbled. Silence threatened to settle
TWANG!
TWANG!
"Gahh!"
Cries echoed. Adventurers staggered.
Goblin archers.
Dozens of them emerged from high ledges and tunnels above, losing poisoned arrows in a volley of death.
Thunk! Thunk!
Several adventurers dropped to their knees, bleeding, gasping.
"Ambush! Suppress the archers!" Garrek roared.
No hesitation. The Ranged Unit snapped into action.
"Volley Formation FIRE!"
ZING. ZING. WHOOSH.
Arrows and magic streaked upward like meteors. Explosions lit the cavern, illuminating goblin silhouettes just before they were ripped apart.
The Support Unit surged forward once more, their chants echoing through the stone.
"Purify!"
"Cleanse Poison!"
"Greater Heal!"
Radiant light rippled across the fallen, lifting them from the edge of death. The poison's sting faded, wounds sealed shut.
But deeper within the den… something watched.
Something waited.
And its hunger was just awakening.
Then came the real threat.
As the adventurers pushed deeper, the cramped tunnels gave way to a vast underground chamber. The air changed thick, suffocating, charged with something unnatural. Strange runes pulsed across the walls, glowing with sickly crimson light.
"What is this place…" whispered one adventurer, his voice trembling.
From the center of the room, above a black altar twisted with bones and rotting vines, a figure appeared floating, wrapped in a shroud of shadow.
WHOOMMM…
A chilling wind blew through the cavern, and the torches flickered violently.
The Goblin Shaman.
Four feet tall and hunched, yet floating without motion, its ashen skin cracked like dried stone, veins pulsing with inky black mana. Its eyes burned with hellish red fire, and it clutched a twisted staff made of bone and crowned with a crystal skull that screamed silently in the presence of light.
Its robe was a tapestry of curses and blasphemous symbols etched in dried blood.
Garrek's eyes widened in horror. "A… Dark Magic Goblin Shaman… This explains everything. The corruption. The beasts. The madness."
The Shaman raised its staff.
"Kar'zul nektha… rahk ven tor'ul!"
BOOOOOM!!!
Black portals tore open across the chamber. Screams erupted from the abyss.
Dire wolves with matted fur and blazing red eyes lunged forth.
Skeletal hounds snapped with shattered jaws.
Shadow goblins barely visible phantoms of darkness crawled from the rifts.
"ALL UNITS! HOLD THE LINE!!" Garrek bellowed, slamming his sword to the ground with a thunderous
CLANG!
---
Jack, James, and Emma stood side by side.
James stepped forward first, sword raised high.
CLASH!
A skeletal hound lunged, but he met it head-on with a brutal counter, blade splitting bone and skull.
Ironfang roared
A deep, guttural growl that echoed off the walls like a war horn. The beast charged, steel fur bristling with aura, and tore through a shadow goblin,
RIP! SNAP!
Jack's eyes burned with focus.
He moved swiftly, weaving magic through his dagger.
"Hydro-Cryo Link!"
Jack wasn't like the others.
His Supreme Blessing shrouded in mystery granted him something no ordinary adventurer could wield: mastery over all eleven elements.
Jack learns using every attack infuses with multiple elements.
A wave of water swept across the floor
SPLASH!
And instantly froze. Goblins slipped and screamed.
"Now Pyro Kick!"
FWOOSH!!!
Flames erupted from his boot as he spun, shattering the frozen monsters into shards of ice and blood.
Emma stood firm, her hands glowing with two colors at once red and blue."Arcane Burst!"
A chain reaction of fire and water magic leapt from target to target.
BOOM!
SIZZLE!
CRACK!
Flames stunned the dark beasts, while water shocks doused and weakened their cursed flesh.
---
The fight dragged on.
Minutes became an hour.
Blood soaked the stone floor.
Adventurers screamed. Some fell. But none gave up.
The Support Unit was relentless chanting, healing, and shielding. Circles of light bloomed around the fallen.
"Divine Sanctuary!"
"Greater Vital Surge!"
One priest fell to his knees, casting a final blessing spell barrier just as a skeletal hound lunged.
THUMP!
The barrier held, and a Knight drove his blade through the beast's back.
---
Then came the moment.
The Shaman's staff began to glow. A dark chant rang louder than ever.
"NOW! While it's casting!" Jack yelled, voice sharp like steel.
James and Ironfang broke formation
SMASH!
CRASH!
Plowing through summoned monsters like a living battering ram.
Emma raised her hand "FIREBALL!"
KABOOM!
The blast struck the Shaman's barrier. It wavered cracks rippling like lightning across glass.
Jack burst forward.
Magic surged through him.
"Pyro-Hydro-Anemo Fusion Blade!"
His dagger flared with steam, fire, and slicing wind. The air around him spiraled howling like a storm.
He lunged.
SLAAAAASH!!!
The blade struck true cutting diagonally across the Shaman's chest.
The fusion of elements detonated on impact
BOOOOMMMM!!!
Steam exploded outward. The wind howled. The fire scorched everything in its wake.
The Shaman screamed a sound like a thousand tortured souls. Its body convulsed, cracks tearing through its form, cursed runes bursting into sparks.
And then
Silence.
The dark aura faded.
The portals closed.
The monsters collapsed.
And the Shaman… was no more.
With a final, guttural shriek
"SKRRAAAAAAARGHH!!" the Goblin Shaman's form crumbled to ash, vanishing in a swirl of dark smoke. The suffocating pressure that weighed on their hearts began to ease. But the silence that followed wasn't peace…
It was a warning.
---
RUMMMMMBLE…
The ground trembled beneath their feet.
A wall behind the altar groaned open, revealing a wide stone corridor. Dust fell like snow. Etchings along the wall glowed faintly red, pulsing… beckoning.
A throne room.
---
Priests knelt in prayer, golden light flowing from their palms. "Grace of Renewal…" whispered one, mending a crushed ribcage. Mages shared mana potions. James leaned against Ironfang, breathing deep. Jack's knuckles were bruised and bloodied. Emma stared into the flame of her conjured orb, quiet and still.
They had minutes to recover.
Then, wordlessly, they stood and walked toward destiny.
---
The doors opened.
CREAAAAAK—K-KOOM!
The ancient gates thundered open, revealing a vast chamber cloaked in shadow and power.
Tall, cracked pillars lined the room, remnants of a forgotten age. Ripped goblin banners fluttered from above. The scent of death and decay clung to the air like fog.
And there atop a black throne made of bones and shattered weapons sat him.
---
The Goblin King.
Ten feet tall. Hulking. Muscles coiled like iron beneath his green, scarred skin. His jagged crown gleamed with dried blood. Bone armor wrapped around his body, and in his hand he gripped a spiked steel club large enough to crush a man in a single swing.
His eyes yellow, glowing, intelligent locked onto them.
"GRUUAAARGHHHH!!!"
The king's roar thundered through the hall like a war drum. Dust rained from above. The ground shook.
Garrek stepped forward, sword drawn.
"Goblin King!" he bellowed. "Everyone, give it your all!"
---
The final battle began.
CLAAAANG!
Steel met steel.
The Frontline Unit surged forward like a wall of iron. James shouted orders as he slashed through goblin guards, Ironfang ripping into flesh with bloodied fangs.
"Block the left! Ironfang, with me!" The beast lunged. Together, they took down a towering elite goblin, its screams echoing across the throne room.
---
The Damage Dealers moved like a storm.
Jack blurred into motion "Chrono Slash!"
Time distorted. The world slowed. For half a second, the Goblin King froze mid-swing.
"Mom, now!"
Emma's spell ignited the air "Piercing Fireball!"
A lance of flame tore through the moment of stillness, crashing into the king's side with a
BOOM!
He snarled, staggered but not down.
---
The Ranged Unit unleashed hell from the rear.
"Volley formation fire!" Arrows screamed overhead, raining onto the elite guards. Explosive spells crackled like lightning
"Anemo Shatter!"
"Geo Impact!"
The air was chaotic.
The Support Unit sprinted through the battlefield. Priests created barriers of light, lifted the fallen with resurrection sigils, and bathed the wounded in wide-range healing bursts.
---
Hours passed. Blood spilled. Screams faded. Muscles burned. Mana ran low. But they held the line.
Finally…
CRAAAAACK!!!
James and Ironfang struck the Goblin King's leg with a synchronized combo, bringing the beast to one knee.
Jack dashed forward, his dagger burning with triple-element energy. "Pyro-Hydro-Anemo Fusion Slash!"
With a flash of steam and flame, his dagger tore through the king's chest, splitting armor, flesh, and bone alike.
THUUUUUD!
The Goblin King crashed onto his throne, lifeless his crown clattering to the stone floor.
---
Silence.
Then
"HAAAAAAAH!"
A unified cheer rose.
Fists pumped the air. Exhausted smiles broke across dirt-smeared faces.
They did it.
But for Jack, Emma, James, and Ironfang, this was just the beginning.
In a world of rising mana… and awakening threats…
true danger had only begun to stir.
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To Be Continued…!!