Red Monster

Each arrow fired hit the target, but it was less accurate. He was having a hard time hitting the head, so he aimed at the body. He only managed to fire twelve arrows before the two forces clashed.

Once the two sides clashed, it would be hard for him to hit just the kobold. It was a mess of a fight. He could still fire further back. He tried it, and out of four shots, he only hit one of them. The power behind his shot was weak, just creating a shallow wound.

Red decided to stop with the bow. It was time for him to join. That was the only way for him to get his loot, after all. He would get nothing if he stayed behind like this.

His own people hated him; they wouldn’t bother to leave some behind for him. They would take all loot for themselves whether they killed it or not.

"Plan... Let’s get my sword back first."

He jumped off a tree, taking the same path when he first snuck into the kobold village. He hoped the kobold didn’t find his sword.

The battle cries were getting louder and louder as he got closer to the village. He snuck into the village from the side, tracking back to where he first met the Kobold Chief.

He had his blade in his right hand, going to the deeper part of the village. It was not hard to find the house where he crashed into. Only the front part of the house was destroyed.

Red looked around, hoping to find his black sword. While he still needed to work on its length, he didn’t want to lose his sword. He rummaged through the debris, yet he could not find his sword.

He looked around and still could not find it until he heard a dragging sound that was followed by a hissing noise.

Red jumped forward, quickly turning around, raising his blade. He thought the kobold had found him, but he saw three small kobolds. The three kobolds were around his chest, and they didn’t wear armor, just like the other kobolds.

His eyes quickly turned toward the sword that was held by the small kobold in the middle. That was his black sword. It was too long for the kobold, so he had to drag it to carry it. That was what alerted him.

The other two kobolds were holding spears, slightly longer than his throwing spear.

Red didn’t immediately attack the three kobolds. He looked around, assessing the situation. The kobolds might use these three young kobolds as bait. He might become too paranoid, but it was never wrong to be careful. He didn’t see or hear anything nearby.

Red remained in his spot; in fact, he pretended to take a step back. That was his tactic to avoid an ambush or getting into a disadvantageous position. He wanted to lure the three young kobolds toward him instead.

Sure enough, the inexperienced kobolds took the bait. They let out a hissing laughter, approaching him. They didn’t even notice when his blade moved toward his weaker hand.

The moment the three kobolds entered the house, Red pulled the throwing spear. He took a step forward and threw the first spear.

Whoosh!

The spear shot through the air, piercing through the young kobold in the middle. That small body flung backward, falling to the ground. More than half of the spear pierced through the head. The spear struck the ground, causing the body to hang halfway. The body slowly slid down and stopped when it reached the spearhead.

That caused the other two young kobolds to stop their track. They stopped to look behind them, only to see their friend’s dead body.

Red was already moved up with the blade in his right hand. His blade sliced through the young kobold to his right. The head flew up as blood spurted out from the body.

He then jumped at the last kobold, pinning the kobold down. Before the young kobold could scream, the blade pierced through the neck. He twisted the blade before pulling it out, then he sliced the young kobold’s neck for the kill.

Red threw the blade to the side and got up to retrieve his black sword. He was ready for another battle, in case the ambush he feared showed up. That was just his paranoid thoughts, as there was no ambush coming up.

He didn’t bother to exchange the bodies for loot. They were all level 7 and level 8, not worth the loot. With his sword back, he headed toward the sound of the battle.

The battle was at the entrance where he killed the four guards. The battle took place on that side, and he moved there. He quickly arrived on the battlefield. It was to be expected that the goblins were pushing the kobolds.

The kobolds were pushed back inside the village. The battle was currently at the entrance, but the goblins took big casualties. He could see more goblin bodies than kobold bodies.

Red didn’t join the fight right away, observing the battle from the side. It was hard to understand how they suffered more casualties when they outnumbered the kobolds. He found out what happened.

The hobgoblins were using the goblins as a meat shield. They were charging behind the kobolds. While the kobolds took down the goblins, the hobgoblins took the chance to strike the kobolds.

That was when he realized that he was not actually hated when that one hobgoblin wanted to put him in the front. They were just selfish, trying to use the goblin as a meat shield.

In a way, he was still considered a goblin, and he looked sturdier than most goblins. So yeah, that hobgoblin didn’t hate him; they just wanted to use him as a sturdy shield. There was no doubt he could take more hits than other goblins. It could be said he was a reliable shield.

Red didn’t know whether he should feel happy or not that he was not actually hated. A goblin was treated as a disposable shield, not just him but every goblin.

The other goblins didn’t dare to disobey, and he was the weird one. He didn’t obey the hobgoblins, and he was certainly the strongest goblin, rivaling the hobgoblin while still being a goblin.

"Level 10. I just need to reach level 10."

Once he reached level 10 and evolved into a hobgoblin. He would not be treated as a disposable meat shield anymore. That would get rid of the annoyance of how the hobgoblins treated him.

Red put aside the thought and assessed the situation. He thought about how he should start the fight. It was a chaotic battle where he might get surrounded since he attacked the kobold from behind.

Then he heard a booming sound from the other side. That was when he saw two big figures clashing. It was Chief against Chief. Their towering figures were what made them stand out.

He looked away from them, calmly observing the battle once more.

’Don’t have to overcomplicate things. It’s just another hit and run!’

With that in mind, Red used Appraisal, identifying his target. He was looking for level 13 kobolds and above. Those were mostly dropping three or more cores.

Red spotted his target and marched forward into the battle. He could not find a level 13 kobold, but there was a level 12 kobold. He joined from the side; the kobold didn’t expect him to come. His sword sliced through the level 12 kobold’s neck.

Red was surprised by how easy it was to cut the kobold’s neck with his sword. It was like cutting a branch with his sword. There was no real resistance as the head fell off. He quickly exchanged the body for loot, getting three cores from that one body: two Might Cores and one Magic Core.

He absorbed the cores right away as he retreated again. However, three kobolds spotted him and chased after him. He used Appraisal on them. One level 11 kobold and two level 12 kobolds.

He turned around and dashed toward the building. With his current Dexterity, he easily created the distance. He stood at the door with a bow in his hand.

That was right; he was quick to swap his weapon. His sword was stuck to the ground as his bow was ready with an arrow. The first shot was a headshot, killing one level 12 kobold. The second shot struck the chest of a level 12 kobold, and it fell to the ground.

Red switched up again, putting the bow on his back and drawing the sword. He was not afraid of the confrontation. The kobold thrust its spear forward, and he was surprised how slow the spear was.

He easily dodged the thrust with one step to the right. Then he swung his sword upward, diagonally. It sliced through the kobold’s hands, then sliced its chest, leaving a deep gash.

Red then kicked the kobold’s knees, causing the kobold to kneel. Then, with another swing, he cut the kobold’s neck. He was about to finish the kobold when he shot in the chest until he sensed something- danger.

He looked up and saw an arrow coming. His eyes widened in surprise, too late to react, but he still reacted. He tried to move to the side, but it was too late. An arrow pierced his left shoulder.

The arrow pierced his leather armor, penetrating his flesh. He took a deep breath, enduring the pain. He saw the archer, quite far away from him. The archer was preparing for the second shot.

Red turned around, running into the house, taking cover.