I Have a Task Log

As they drew closer, Colin saw several figures standing in front of the stockade wall.

They were six fully armed Hobgoblins.

The passage wasn’t very wide, and the six Hobgoblins stood shoulder to shoulder, their line stretching nearly the length of the wall. There wasn’t much room for them to maneuver.

The one standing in the center wore a Plate Armor Chest Guard, while the rest of his body was covered in pieces of Chain Armor. His right hand rested on the hilt of the Hand Half Sword at his waist.

The Hobgoblins surrounding him wore ordinary Chain Armor and wielded Armed Swords and Shields.

Colin glanced up above the stockade wall.

A number of goblins stood up there, crowding the edge to watch the spectacle. They clutched Short Bows in their hands.

Though they still looked like a ragtag bunch, they were a clear improvement over the wild goblins of the wilderness. It appeared the Hobgoblins had given their "cousins" some basic training.

"Stop. Take off your hoods!" the Hobgoblin officer shouted at the group.

After Dorn removed his hood, the others immediately pulled theirs down as well, signaling their lack of hostile intent.

The Hobgoblin officer said, "Do you have permits?"

"No," Colin replied.

"No permits. A human, a Gray Dwarf, a Half-Orc..." The Hobgoblin officer looked over Colin’s group one by one, his eyes lighting up when he saw Ale.

He then asked, "Is that an Elf?"

"I’m a Half-Elf."

"Elven blood is good enough," the Hobgoblin officer declared. "You, put down your Magic Staff and come with us. The rest of you must work for the legion for ten days. After that, you’ll each turn over ten Gold Coins. When your work is finished, we’ll issue you permits. Anyone holding a permit can pass by paying two Gold Coins."

"Wait, I remember the permits here only cost one Gold Coin," Dorn said, frowning.

"What I just said *are* the current rules."

"Don’t you think your rules are a bit unreasonable?" Colin said.

At his words, the goblins on the wall and the surrounding Hobgoblins erupted in laughter. The harsh sound of the Goblin Language echoed through the passage, its grating tones easily rivaling the speech of Demons.

"Rules are made by the powerful, young human. That’s some fine Armor you’re wearing. You can’t be more than twenty, can you? How many years have you trained? Two? Three? Hah. You don’t deserve that Armor."

With that, the Hobgoblin officer drew his Hand Half Sword and raised it high, ready to strike.

With a soft SHING, the Hobgoblins behind him drew their Armed Swords and raised their Shields in near-perfect unison.

The goblins on the watchtowers and the stockade wall all rose, drawing their Short Bows and aiming their sharp arrows at the group below.

Colin glanced at the Hobgoblin before him.

’Are these guys trying to get a piece of the action because the Drow are buying Elf slaves? Or are they trying to get on the Drows’ good side by capturing Elf prisoners? Or is it as simple as this Hobgoblin wanting to steal my Armor?’

’Whatever the reason, I definitely can’t go along with this.’

"I’ll give you three seconds," the Hobgoblin officer said.

Before the Hobgoblin could even start counting, Colin heard the sound of Ale chanting a Spell from behind him.

Seeing this, the Hobgoblin officer swung down his Hand Half Sword.

The goblins on the wall released their bowstrings, unleashing a rain of arrows.

Colin drew [Burning Blood] from his waist and instantly entered his Sword Dance state.

He used the Strong Sword Body of his blade, the part near the Sword Guard, to parry the opponent’s Weak Sword Body. As he forcefully pushed the weapon away, he twisted his wrist, striking at the side of the hobgoblin’s face with his sword tip.

Thanks to that extra point of Power he’d recently gained, Colin’s movements were even faster. Combined with his various Specialties and high Agility Attribute, his actions were incredibly precise—like a surgeon performing a flawless operation with a scalpel.

The Hobgoblin officer’s pupils contracted in shock at the move.

He never expected the young human before him to possess such masterful Swordsmanship.

Of course, that didn’t mean he would simply wait to be killed.

The blades of the two Hand Half Swords ground against each other, throwing off blinding sparks.

He shifted his Hand Half Sword forward, moving the Strong Sword Body of his blade against his opponent’s, trying to push away the sword tip now closing in on his face.

An arrow whizzed past his ear.

Colin took a deep breath and let his Helmet’s Face Mask slide down.

The goblins’ Short Bows were no match for his Armor. A constant CLINK-CLANK-CLINK rang out as the arrows glanced off, but he felt no pain.

The contest before him was far more important.

Although Colin’s Power was much greater than before, he was still slightly weaker than this Hobgoblin. A direct contest of strength would be unwise.

Twisting at the waist, Colin sharply turned and smashed his elbow at his opponent’s sword hilt.

As he knocked his opponent’s blade aside, he twisted his wrist and chanted a Spell.

With a FWOOSH, his blade erupted in flame as Colin unleashed [Emerald Flame Sword], slashing at his opponent’s head.

A burst of fire erupted on the Hobgoblin officer’s head, and the resulting Flame sent another Hobgoblin behind him staggering.

The flames subsided.

One area of the Hobgoblin officer’s head was blackened, and half his face was burned. The gash from the cut was visible through the charred skin.

Meanwhile, Ale completed her spell.

A biting gale carrying moisture blew forward, instantly encasing the charging Hobgoblin soldiers in a shell of ice.

Three of them were trapped fast by the shells of ice, rendered immobile.

Kase, now in a state of [Frenzy], charged straight forward.

He sent one Hobgoblin soldier flying with a shoulder slam, then smoothly drew his terrifyingly large Two-Handed Battleaxe and brought it down on another’s shoulder.

The blow shattered the Hobgoblin’s Chain Armor, shearing off the unlucky bastard’s shoulder and arm. Broken chain links scattered across the ground.

"How could you..."

The Hobgoblin officer, stunned by the sudden onslaught, stared at the Adventurers in disbelief, as if he were seeing ghosts.

Kase paid no mind to his opponent’s shock.

He charged forward alone and unleashed a furious assault on the Hobgoblin officer.

Colin took advantage of this opening to take out a Mica Plate and aimed his palm at the nearby stockade wall. The wall, pieced together from fungi, immediately began to shake violently.

In just a few moments, it shattered, sending splinters of fungus flying everywhere.

A wide gap was torn open in the stockade wall.

Several goblins were impaled by the debris, bleeding profusely. Most of the others were badly injured by the shockwave, blood seeping from the corners of their eyes, mouths, and nostrils.

[Shatter]!