Thump, thump, thump—the echo of stomping feet grew louder and louder.
The goblins, hundred strong, stomped their feet in unison, creating a deafening sound that shook the underground chamber.
“Raaaah!” An ugly goblin, dragging a beautiful young maiden behind, loudly roared.
“Raaah!” The goblins screamed and pointed their fists towards the ceiling.
As the roaring and stomping got even louder, the goblin tied Bella to the bonfire and prepared to light it.
The goblin could feel the anticipation building within the goblins as they eagerly awaited the sight of the flames engulfing her delicate figure.
As it grabbed a torch and approached the bonfire, a sinister grin spread across its face.
Thump—but then, a single thump silenced the crowd.
Everyone turned around to see an elderly goblin clutching onto a walking cane, walking from the tent that was covered by the shadows.
“Goblin Elder!” The goblin spoke while the other, less intelligent goblins stood by with awe and respect.
The Goblin Elder nodded and approached the bonfire slowly, its eyebags looking heavy and tired.
After reaching the bonfire, the elderly goblin lifted its head to look into the young woman’s red eyes.
“Did you know… red eyes are a symbol of great power and wisdom in our culture.” The Goblin Elder tapped its cane against the ground. “Our ancestor once ate a person with those eyes. It gave him immense power and wisdom that he passed down through generations.”
Bella shivered, looking at the reflection of herself in the Goblin Elder’s eyes.
Those red eyes had been only a curse in her life.
Whether it was back in reality or here, the curse seemed to follow her like a shadow.
The Goblin Elder lifted its hairy and wrinkly arm, then closed Bella’s eyes with its long nails.
“Now, those eyes are mine.” It whispered sinisterly. “Light up the bonfire!”
The goblin grinned and tossed the torch into the air.
As the torch flew across the air, it sent golden light across the faces of the ugly goblins, casting dark shadows on the walls and ceiling.
After a short flight, the torch fell to the bottom of the bonfire.
The scarlet-red flames instantly became mighty, consuming all the logs and sticks with intense heat.
Bella opened her teary-eyed face and gazed at the mesmerizing display of fire.
The immense heat assaulted her like a relentless wave, making it hard to breathe.
‘Mother… father…’
As she looked at the fire, she saw a vision of a car driving down a twisty mountain road, covered by the darkness of the night.
The car’s lights lit up the area like a brilliant fire.
As the fire crackled, the vision turned from a peaceful night ride to a terrifying scene of a car veering off the road and crashing into a ravine.
The car was engulfed in flames, but then a bruised man carried two red-eyed women out of the wreckage, barely conscious but alive.
Crackle—the fire cracked, and the vision vanished.
The heat dried up Bella’s tears before they managed to fall off her delicate chin.
“Food, food, food, food, food!” The goblins stomped their feet against the ground as they watched their meal being prepared before their hungry eyes.
The Goblin Elder smiled as it watched the fire burning before its eyes.
However, then it felt a strange presence.
‘Someone powerful is coming.’ The Goblin Elder’s eyes widened.
But before it could react, the ceiling fell apart like a crumbling ruin.
The goblins looked towards the ceiling in shock and ran out of the way, but the falling debris killed many of them.
As the dust cloud swept through the chamber, the Goblin Elder couldn’t see anything.
Then a wind whistled past it, and a shadowy figure emerged from the dust cloud.
Bella, covered by the flames, had her eyes closed, but then she felt a powerful pull, and suddenly she felt a different kind of warmth.
It was like she was back in her mother’s embrace.
She wrapped her slender arms around the unknown object and let out a very satisfied sigh.
She then opened her eyes and felt like she was dreaming, floating among the clouds, but then she saw a face—a face she didn’t expect to see again.
“J-Jesse?”
“You alright?” Ambrose landed safely on the ground, carrying Bella with Princess Carry while she had her arms wrapped around his well-toned torso.
“U-uh…” She was speechless, not sure what to say.
“A human…” The Goblin Elder scoffed at the sight of Ambrose. “I have felt your presence before, but it was very faint. You came here once in your soul form…”
Ambrose gently put Bella down and said, “Bella, follow the sewer; it should lead you out.”
“W-what about you?” Bella asked, her eyes still moist with tears.
“A business I have to deal with.” Ambrose slowly drew his Black Sword and pointed it at the old goblin. “You go. I’ll keep the goblins here with me.”
Bella took a step backward, but then her gaze lingered in the direction of the prison and shook her head.
“I-I can’t. There were people with me. I can’t leave them behind!”
Ambrose turned silent and looked at her determined face.
It stunned him because even after such a traumatizing experience, she still wore a very strong and resolute expression.
“Alright then.” Ambrose nodded. “You go get them. I’ll protect you.”
Bella’s heart skipped a beat, and her cheeks felt unfamiliarly warm.
“O-okay.” She nodded with shyness as she felt her heart beating abnormally quickly.
“None of you will leave…” Goblin Elderly lunged forward like a frog and pointed the cane at the beautiful Bella. “Your eyes are mine!”
Swoosh—Ambrose sprang forward and smashed his sword against the powerful cane, stopping him from casting the strange spell.
“Ngh!” Goblin Elder groaned and fell back to the ground, its hand shaking with numbness.
“Your opponent is me.” Ambrose said and raised his sword high. “Bella, go!”
Bella nodded and ran past Ambrose, going towards the prison cell.
The dust cloud was shielding her from the view of the goblins, and the path was empty.
However, then one of the goblins stumbled out of the dust cloud, one of its arms missing, but when it saw the red-eyed Bella, its mouth stretched into a disgusting grin.
It charged towards her with a blood-curdling scream.
Ambrose kicked at the Goblin Elder’s cane, forcing it to step backward, and at the same time, he hurled the sword across the air.
The black blade flew past Bella and stabbed right between the goblin’s eyes, ending its life.
Bella shook and turned back to Ambrose in shock. 𝗈𝚟xt.𝗇t
‘I’ll protect you.’
His words echoed in her mind.
She clutched her chest and whispered, “Thank you.”
Then she entered the prison and saw the prisoners shaking in fear, imagining the sight of them getting eaten.
After hearing the footsteps, they began sobbing and crying, thinking it was now their turn.
“I-It’s you!” The tired-looking woman shouted in shock and stood up with a smile. “You escaped? How?”
“You’ll see soon.” Bella grabbed the old, brass keys from the wall, opened each prison cell, and removed the shackles from the prisoners.
“How can we escape? Those goblins are still out there!” One of the prisoners cried out.
They remembered the sight of hundreds of goblins, and it was impossible to get past such a powerful army.
“Just follow me.” Bella said and ran out of the prison, followed by the tired-looking woman and, lastly, the rest of the prisoners.
When they arrived at the chamber, they were shocked to see the dust cloud that had mostly dissipated already.
They saw hundreds of goblins groaning in pain, while over half of them had been crushed by the fallen debris.
“What in the world…”
“Who is he?” The tired-looking woman pointed at the black-haired young man, fighting alone against the Elder Goblin and dozens of goblins.
“He saved us. Let’s go!” Bella shouted, taking the lead and running towards him.
Hearing the rapid footsteps, Ambrose glanced at them all and shouted. “The tunnel behind me, go!”
Bella nodded and entered the path, but before leaving, she allowed everyone to pass her.
Lastly, she looked at Ambrose’s strong back and whispered. “Please survive…”
“Raah!” The Goblin Elder screamed and smashed its cane into the black blade, but the young man’s guard was simply too powerful. “Filthy human!”
“Heh, I am filthy?” Ambrose retorted with a smirk.
“Grr!” The Goblin Elder raised its cane high and spoke in an unknown language. “Re Nu Ka Ma Kusana!”
The ground beneath Ambrose started shaking violently.
“?” Ambrose quickly jumped into the air and saw the ground beneath him crumble apart, turning into a bottomless pit.
‘A magician, just like Karma. Excellent.’
Ambrose grinned and landed safely on the ground.
“You think… you can defeat us all?” The Goblin Elder asked, and soon, hundreds of goblins rose back to their feet, their wounds healing as the elderly goblin healed them with a spell!
Ambrose narrowed his eyes, but then a strange dinging sound entered his ears.
Ding, ding.
[A Secret Quest Had Been Activated!]