Chapter 27: Goblin Priest

Page (1/3)

Damn, this trip has been worth it.
Hearing a goblin speak human language.
As a massive figure hunched over and stepped out from the spherical house, Roshu involuntarily gasped.
He found it hard to describe what kind of creature stood before him.
Green skin, a hooked nose like an eagle’s beak, blood-red eyes—all these traits confirmed it was a goblin.
But this goblin was unusually large.
It had just bent over to exit the spherical house, but when it straightened up, it resembled a small giant, even bigger than Leila’s transformed form.
What made it stranger was the brightly colored feather-adorned ceremonial robe it wore, clutching a ritual staff, its face painted and masked with a wooden crow’s beak—a clear sign it was a shaman.
But who in their right mind uses a ritual staff to bludgeon someone to death?!
Roshu activated his scrutiny.
Yellow light flickered over the goblin shaman’s body.
Sure enough… it was a third-tier goblin.
The difference between a third-tier and a second-tier goblin was enormous!
Roshu recalled the third-tier beings he’d encountered so far:
The towering slime on the Slime Plain, as tall as a fortress wall; Hill, who unleashed showers of arrows with a mere bow gesture; and Tazanya, who delivered a single punch almost killing Roshu when he was second-tier under thorned protection.
All of this proved one thing: the gap in power between tiers in this world was vast.
So what about him now?
Was his strength enough to reach third-tier?
Roshu looked at the towering goblin shaman opposite him, a faint battle intent stirring in his heart.
The earlier skirmish had hardly been satisfying.
He calculated his current resources and felt he was not yet cornered.
This fight was going to be intense!
“You… dare to come here… you shall not leave,”
The goblin shaman looked down on Roshu with contempt.
Hearing this stirred something in Roshu’s heart.
This was the second time the goblin shaman had said this.
Meaning these goblins really knew him.
Or at least, they knew of his existence—
They knew there was someone relentlessly hunting goblins.
Either way, a glaring question remained:
If they knew him, why hadn’t they come looking for him?
Instead, Roshu had to exert much effort just to track down goblins.
Before Roshu could ponder further, the goblin shaman suddenly moved.
“Ura!!!”
It shouted some incantation, thrusting its ritual staff hard into the ground.
The patterns on the staff flickered.
Thick vines burst from the earth, forming a tight circular wall, enclosing Roshu and the goblin shaman.
“Don’t… even think… of running...”
Two fangs curled from the goblin shaman’s lips, confident that cutting off Roshu’s escape meant certain death for him.
Roshu smiled:

Page (2/3)

“I have no intention of running.”
Grasping the black broad sword tightly, he took a step forward, choosing to strike first.
The goblin shaman’s eyes brimmed with mockery.
He had seen many humans before—berserkers or swordsmen—who, emboldened by some power, foolishly tried to clash head-on with him.
Each time, he emerged victorious, their heads strung together as necklaces.
Looks like today, the necklace will grow longer.
With this thought, he lightly swung his fist, ready to finish off this overconfident human.
Boom!
Fist met sword.
Blood splattered.
The force transmitted through the blade jolted Roshu back several steps.
Seeing the fresh red gash across the goblin shaman’s fist, Roshu wiped sweat from his brow and smiled:
“You can still cancel that wall and run if you want.”
“Gah!!!”
The goblin shaman roared in rage, unleashing a primal scream.
He hadn’t expected Roshu to actually wound him, and even with his limited grasp of the Gran Continent language, he understood the mockery.
As an elite among goblins, he absolutely would not allow a human to humiliate his dignity.
He had underestimated his opponent earlier, but this time, he would unleash his full power!
This time, he would bring Roshu down in one strike!
Boom!!!
They clashed again.
Instant separation on contact.
The goblin shaman stared in disbelief at the new deep wound on his fist and the dozen or so steps Roshu had retreated.
He had clearly used all his strength!!
Yet he hadn’t crushed this damned human into a pulp.
Because he could feel this cursed human’s power was even stronger than before!!
How could this be?
Was this human hiding his true strength?
What tier was he really?
Could it be...
He hadn’t even gone all out yet?!
A sense of unease crept into the goblin shaman’s heart.
He forced it down, reassuring himself:
Impossible, this human must have given his all; no human could possess such terrifying strength.
Especially after seeing blood trickle from Roshu’s mouth, the goblin shaman grew more certain.
He became excited again.
That meant that even at full strength on both sides, he was still superior!
Raising his fist once more, he slammed it fiercely toward Roshu.
At that moment, he heard Roshu mutter:
“Isn't 8 points enough? Let’s add 3 more and see...”

Page (3/3)

What did that mean?
The goblin shaman was baffled, but the clash of fist and sword was inevitable.
Boom!!
Another fierce impact.
This time, Roshu did not retreat.
Their strength was almost evenly matched.
But a new deep wound appeared on the goblin shaman’s fist.
This injury was clearly worse than the previous two; he could feel his hand trembling painfully.
Even more trembling was his heart.
This human had really been hiding his strength and now, at full power, was almost equal to him!
But was this really his full power?!
For the first time, fear surfaced in the goblin shaman’s heart.
This fear of a human was humiliating, yet after the shame came inevitable dread.
Torn between conflicting emotions, he finally exploded in fury, shouting at Roshu and yanking the ritual staff from the ground.
The towering vine wall instantly dissolved.
Clutching the staff close, his mind steadied somewhat.
Though this move confirmed Roshu’s initial mockery, in battle, only the victor holds the right to speak!
As long as he won in the end, it would be enough!!!
Now armed, at worst, he could fight this damned human to a draw without injury.
Moreover,
The goblin shaman chuckled.
There was no need to rely solely on strength—he was a shaman; he had other means!
The ultimate winner would surely be him!!!
But suddenly, he saw Roshu smile as well.
Roshu’s gaze shifted toward the two second-tier goblins and several first-tier goblins waiting beyond the vines.
A faint system prompt seemed to ring in his ears.
His lips curled upward.
Perfect, my points are almost running out.
In the nearby thicket,
Leila, who had been anxiously watching the vine entrapment and prepared to rush in at any moment, finally relaxed when she saw Roshu emerge smiling.
She completely let her guard down.
“When the master smiles, the opponent usually meets a grim fate”—this was the first rule in her memo.
And since the master looked happy, she decided not to disturb him.
Then, what should she do to help her master?
Leila’s eyes turned toward the spherical house that now stood empty after the goblin shaman had emerged.