Chapter 66: Oracle of Vaal’kor
The bodies of the veteran soldiers tensed as the five goblins of various statures raced toward them. Their approach was so direct that there was no mistaking their intentions. The soldiers tightened their grips around their weapons and raised their shields, planting their feet firmly into the earth as they prepared to absorb the incoming assault.
BOOOM!
The first clash lasted less than a heartbeat. Brox’s massive metal club crashed into the shield wall with such overwhelming force that several shields shattered instantly, their wooden frames exploding beneath the impact. The kobolds behind them were thrown backward as if struck by a charging beast, several of their bodies violently twisting through the air before slamming into the ground.
"Move!"
Brox roared as he stepped over the broken shields, his broad body pushing through the gap he had created.
"Don’t let these little bastards surround us!" Lucy, Tal, Poh, and Rudor followed immediately, exploiting the opening before the surviving soldiers could reform their line.
However, the moment they pushed through the defensive formation, the next figure standing several dozen meters ahead of them was Tong’a. The old kobold walked toward them with his staff planted against the ground with every measured step, his aged body moving with none of the urgency that should have accompanied a battlefield filled with dying soldiers.
"I’ll crush the old man!" Tal shouted, and unlike the others, he accelerated instead of slowing down.
Immense excitement burned in his eyes as he raced ahead, his sword pulled back and ready to strike. He had watched Brox destroy the defensive line and clearly believed Tong’a would be little different.
The old kobold was smaller and visibly aged, while Tal was young, fast, and confident in his own abilities. He wanted the first kill after Brox’s display, and his excitement completely drowned out the quiet warning instinct that should have told him something was wrong.
Swoosh!
Within seconds, Tal reached Tong’a. His sword split the air as he swung directly toward the old kobold’s neck. Tong’a did not even raise his staff to block. Instead, he simply brought its tip down against the earth.
Bam!
The ground beneath Tal’s feet violently erupted. A compact but incredibly dense column of earth shot upward and slammed into his jaw from below with enough force to snap his head backward. His body immediately went limp before he could even understand what had happened. He was still falling forward when several sharpened spikes erupted from the ground around him, punching through his body and riddling his torso with holes. Blood splashed across the earth as his sword slipped from his fingers and landed uselessly beside him.
Splash!
Lucy, Brox, and Rudor all stopped instinctively, while even the usually restless Poh froze for a moment. They watched Tong’a calmly step around Tal’s limp body without even looking down at him. The old kobold did not gloat. He did not even seem pleased. He simply continued walking as though he had brushed aside an inconvenience.
Grash, who was still engaged with Tud’or and Lan’ka farther behind, caught sight of Tal’s corpse from the corner of his eye. His expression tightened.
"That rash fool." The words came out as a curse, but beneath the irritation was something else.
A faint edge of pain. Tal had been reckless, but he was still one of Grash’s people, and the sight of his corpse clearly affected the chieftain more than he wanted anyone to notice.
Tong’a remained indifferent to the reaction behind him. His staff struck the ground again with a heavy thud, and his eyes slowly opened. The calm green of his irises was replaced by a blazing emerald glow that seemed almost unnatural beneath the battlefield’s dusty light.
The forest around him suddenly became restless. Leaves trembled without wind, branches creaked, and the undergrowth shifted as several thick vines slowly emerged from beneath the soil. They crawled across the battlefield from multiple directions, their surfaces tightening as though they were muscles preparing to strike.
The goblins immediately noticed them.
"Move!" Lucy shouted as the vines suddenly snapped toward them.
The five goblins scattered. Brox swung his massive club downward, smashing one vine into the ground before it could wrap around his ankle, while Lucy twisted aside as another whipped past her waist. Rudor pulled his cloak around himself and slipped backward.
Poh was already moving between them, his small frame darting through the gaps as he avoided several tendrils that stabbed into the ground where he had been standing.
Their response, however, was not limited to dodging.
Each goblin quickly reached toward the small sacks tied around their waists and pulled out several pebbles. The stones were covered in tiny runes that immediately began glowing once they were exposed to mana.
Tong’a’s gaze narrowed as he recognized the faint magical fluctuation.
Brrr!
Almost simultaneously, the pebbles burst into flames. The goblins did not even bother throwing them individually. They simply hurled handfuls of the enchanted stones forward, and the moment each one reached the vines, it erupted into a miniature ball of fire. One after another, explosions tore through the vegetation, burning tendrils apart before they could reach their targets. Charred pieces of vine flew through the air and fell smoking onto the ground.
Tong’a’s expression finally changed.It was not fear, but genuine surprise.
These goblins were not relying entirely on their own bodies or conventional weapons. They had prepared enchanted ammunition specifically for dealing with magical beasts and natural magic.
More concerning was the quantity. They could release dozens of these miniature fireballs in the time it would take a normal mage to complete several spells. The sheer volume of fire forced Tong’a’s vines to retreat before they could properly surround the invaders.
"They came prepared," Tong’a muttered, his eyes moving across the goblins as they continued closing the distance.
The goblins did not give him time to think. Brox charged directly through the burning remains of the vegetation, his massive club resting against one shoulder as he picked up speed.
Lucy remained slightly behind him, her bow already in hand, while Rudor and Poh moved through different angles to prevent Tong’a from focusing on one target. They had lost Tal, but they were still four dangerous opponents.
Tong’a’s staff struck the ground again.
Thud!
The earth immediately answered.
Several rows of thick spikes erupted from the soil behind him, then began extending forward in uneven formations.
Brox cursed as a spike erupted directly in front of him. He swung his club into it, smashing the tip apart, but two more emerged immediately afterward. Lucy was forced to retreat several steps while firing arrows between the gaps, each shot forcing Tong’a to raise small slabs of earth to block them.
Poh, however, did not retreat.
His thin limbs and small frame suddenly became his greatest advantage. He slipped through one narrow opening before the earth could close it, ducking beneath a spike and twisting sideways between two others.
He jumped, planted one foot against an angled slab of earth, and pushed himself into another gap before swinging beneath a protruding spike. His movements were so fluid that he almost seemed to be navigating a forest of branches rather than lethal weapons.
Tong’a’s eyes followed him as Poh emerged from the final gap and landed only a few steps away.
"Got you."
The small goblin’s dagger flashed.