Wildness and Masks

The dust settled.

Ogre's spear had already pierced the chest of the goblin that could speak human language.

It raised its short spear and struggled frantically a couple of times, trying to launch a final counterattack with its last breath.

But Ogre didn't give it the chance.

As soon as his attack landed, he immediately withdrew his spear and took a small leap backward to retreat a few steps.

From the very beginning, Ogre had left himself plenty of room to retreat.

It seemed like a narrow victory, but in reality, Ogre could always change tactics and escape at any time—whether his attack was effective or not, Ogre always left himself an out.

'I've won...'

The goblin, having lost its sight and with its heart pierced by a charged spinning spear, was on the brink of death.

The shockwave of the Shattering Spear technique destroyed its heart structure the moment it penetrated its defenses.

...

"I never thought... I'd die at the hands of a... non-Professional human... Why, why do humans always want us dead when they see goblins..."

The goblin Professional, on the verge of death, sensed its impending demise at this moment.

Gradually, it stopped struggling. The Battle Qi that sustained its body was the last thread of life, but as its blood coagulated, this Battle Qi that forcibly maintained its vital signs would eventually dissipate.

"So... this is death."

In its dying moments, its life flashed before its eyes.

It was picked up by a circus animal trainer when it was very young, who saw its intelligence far exceeded that of its kind and decided to adopt it, teaching it human speech in an attempt to tame it.

And it regarded that trainer as family.

As for the Breathing Technique, it learned it by imitating another member of the circus, not expecting that it had quite a talent for it, allowing it to cultivate Battle Qi.

If things had continued like this, perhaps its children could have become part of the goblins...

But after an accident, the circus was gone...

It lost its family and everything else.

The vast human world could accommodate a pet, but not a free goblin...

With no choice, it came to this forest belonging to demon beasts.

'But why, why does everyone either want to eat me or kill me?'

It couldn't understand why its kind was so filthy, nor did it want to understand.

Until later, it met a goblin with a similar experience...

'When will we be respected by everyone?' it asked its older kindred.

'Someday, someday I will make us, make our descendants, break free from savagery and ignorance, leave the dark caves and stand in the sunlight!'

This was the greatest vow it had ever heard.

Clearly...

Clearly, everything was moving in a good direction, so why did it turn out like this...

'Brother Gorler... I can no longer follow you, help you achieve your dream... I failed to protect... this place.'

The last thing it thought of was the brother who had once shared its vow and ideals...

It wanted to know if such peace existed, it wanted to know when their descendants could stop relying on plunder, stop being hunted...

But unfortunately, it would never, ever see the day of that answer.

What awaited it was eternal darkness.

Thud—!

As the Battle Qi dissipated, the goblin Professional used its last strength to grip the short spear.

But it didn't choose to throw it; instead, it thrust it into the ground.

Though it died in a half-kneeling position under the tree, it never truly fell.

...

"Perhaps, there are indeed kind goblins, but I don't want to see those plundered villages anymore."

Looking at the goblin in front of him, which had completely lost its Battle Qi response, Ogre finally felt at ease.

The goblin's words before its death did indeed stir a slight emotion in Ogre.

But that wouldn't change the outcome of the battle.

Nor would it affect Ogre's resolve.

Ogre would only grip his spear more firmly, killing every goblin group he could see.

"Being a goblin isn't your fault, but only when this race completely loses its ability to plunder can I truly rest easy..."

Goblins were never truly the enemies of humans as a whole, because they weren't worthy.

But they were the greatest nightmare for each village.

Because goblins reproduced quickly, if not culled, it wouldn't be long before the resources where they lived would be insufficient.

They didn't dare attack human towns, nor could they venture deeper into the forest.

So to survive, to reproduce better, they had to plunder villages.

They and the villagers were in natural conflict.

Even if these goblins weren't inherently like this, they would eventually be forced to be, because hunger is the best catalyst.

Moreover, most goblins were only slightly smarter than beasts.

Perhaps the goblins here were truly different, but Ogre didn't want to take that gamble. Besides, as an invader, Ogre didn't believe a few words could dissolve hatred—

He didn't have the face for that, nor the energy to forgive on behalf of the dead, to slowly discern the good from the bad among goblins.

So, if they were enemies, Ogre would go all out.

This time, it wasn't about methods, morality, or age and gender.

In this process, Ogre wouldn't deny the opponent's resistance, whether to kill or be killed, he would accept it calmly.

"Confusion and such, let's leave it for after the victory to think about." Ogre muttered to himself as he flicked the blood off his spear tip.

This was both an answer to his fallen opponent and a self-questioning.

Because Ogre didn't know when victory would truly be achieved.

But Ogre understood that as long as the Goblin King lived; as long as the structure of the borderlands' towns remained unchanged, this racial war of the lower life forms would continue.

To the Goblin King, what was consumed was merely the 'excess'; no matter how many died, it wouldn't harm it.

To the human nobles, this was just insignificant loss—after all, those people didn't pay taxes, and it even facilitated maintaining control and settling refugees.

To the church, it was the best way to replenish new forces.

To adventurers and novice Professionals, it was the best training.

Everyone won, except for those dead villagers, the violated and abused girls, and their families, who lost everything.

'Without goblins, there would be ogres, without ogres there would be centaurs, orcs... So who are the real enemies and the real devourers...'

Ogre asked himself, finally looking at Foucault in the distance...

In the end, he let out a nonexistent sigh.

Perhaps there was still a chance for change...

Never mind, besides revenge, there was no need to care about these things, thinking too much would only add to the troubles, better to do what needs to be done.

What needs to be done now is to become stronger as soon as possible!

"Ogre, did you really take down that Professional-level goblin?" Lange, who had just arrived and saw the result of the battle, widened his eyes in disbelief under his helmet.

A goblin Professional couldn't compare to a human, but still, it was a Professional Knight.

With Battle Qi as strong as steel and a Circle of Life that was endless, its endurance could last three days and nights.

(Note: The greatest strength of a Professional Knight is endurance far beyond other professions, this endurance provides the foundation for wearing heavy armor, and having or not having matching heavy armor is also a standard for measuring a knight's combat power.)

If it were Lange, he could at most guarantee not being killed outright.

Besides, the victory was too quick!

"Luck, I guess..." Ogre said, brushing past him and turning back into the fray.

His victory was indeed due to luck.

This goblin Professional's combat skills weren't strong.

Its weapons and equipment were poor, and in this fight, Ogre's spear played a significant role; if he had used his previous rusty iron rod, breaking through the Battle Qi would have been another matter.

Or if the opponent had a full set of armor, Ogre would almost certainly not win—let alone use electricity, a Professional Knight's Battle Qi was no decoration.

Of course, the key to winning was that the opponent's mind was unsettled.

Physical endurance didn't equate to strong mental endurance, and this goblin's spirit was already worn out from successive attacks.

Once patience was insufficient, flaws would appear.

As long as there were flaws, they could be exploited, no matter how incredible the process.

As for whether Ogre had flaws.

He did—he just hid them very well.

"Ogre, come help... Damn, what do these goblins eat to grow so big!"

Thran, after all, came from the village, and despite learning from Yard for over a year, still exposed his old habits when anxious.

Ogre, having just cleared a side of goblins, turned his head towards Thran upon hearing the shout.

In an instant, a thought arose in his mind: 'There's definitely something wrong with this village!'

Because a giant goblin, no, that thing was no longer related to goblins.

It was a green-skinned little giant crawling out of a cellar!

'What on earth is going on in this place!'