Chapter Volume 1 5
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Devouring
I was hiding in thegrass, near the entrance to Goblin Meadow. Just ahead, a lone goblinsat cross-legged, yawning. It was a small demon with green skin, itsheight just about reaching my waist. Its battered clothes seemed tohave been stolen from humans.
Unaware of mypresence, the enemy remained off guard. I had checked thesurroundings and found no sign of its friends. With bated breath, Isneaked behind the goblin.
And then, I used my<Appraisal> skill.
Goblin Fighter Lv3
HP: 30
Strength: 40
MP: 10
Spirit: 10
Agility: 30
Skill: StrengthEnhancement (small)
A Goblin Fighterhuh… It seemed like there were several types of these demons. Itsstatus was lower than mine. I also checked the skill it possessed.
Strength Enhancement(small): A small status increase occurs during physical attacks.
A status enhancementskill? Since this one was classified as \'small\', it was likelythat there would be \'medium\' and \'large\' versions categoriestoo. These kinds of useful skills should be absorbed quickly.
The goblin slowlydozed off and began to snore. This was a great opportunity!
I jumped out of thegrass and dashed straight towards the goblin. It woke up from thesound of my footsteps and turned around, although it was already toolate. I swung Greed in one smooth arc and sliced cleanly through itsneck. The goblin died without uttering even a single cry.
And then, of course,the robotic voice sounded in my head.
<Gluttony skillhas been activated>
<Status update:HP +30, Strength +40, MP +10, Spirit +10, Agility +30>
<StrengthEnhancement (small) skill has been added>
Alright! Just forconfirmation, I appraised myself.
Fate Graphite Lv1
HP: 151
Strength: 191
MP: 111
Spirit: 111
Agility: 161
Skills: Gluttony,Appraisal, Mind-reading, Strength Enhancement (small)
It grew, it grew!Yeah, I\'ve become stronger. As I observed my status and skills withmuch joy, Greed snorted in laughter.
"It was just agoblin, you\'re way too happy. If you react like this every time youdefeat one, it\'ll be sunset before you know it."
"Come on, Idefeated a demon for the first time you know."
For other warriorsthis might have been an overreaction, however, I was someone who hadbeen terrified of monsters up until yesterday. This sense ofliberation came from the fact that the tables have been turned.
As evidence that Ihad defeated a goblin, I cut off its ears. The royal capital gave outprizes to those who defeated demons, redeemed by bringing proof tothe designated facility. One goblin is worth about 10 copper coins,already much better than the daily salary of the gatekeeper job I hadbeen doing. Despite the dangers of the warrior occupation, I wouldearn much more. I placed the goblin\'s ears into a hemp bag that Ihad prepared beforehand.
Now then, next. As Iproceeded with caution, I discovered two goblins in an open area. Iknew one of them was a Goblin Fighter since it was carrying a sword,however, the other one also had a large shield. Instead of trying tofigure it out by thinking alone, it would be much quicker to simplydo an appraisal.
Goblin Guard Lv3
HP: 40
Strength: 20
MP: 10
Spirit: 10
Agility: 10
Skills: HPenhancement (small)
I see, this one hasa slightly higher HP value than the fighter type. To match this, ithad a HP enhancement skill. If I fought carefully enough so that itcould not shield my attack, I should be able to manage.
Keeping to theshadows of the grass, I closed in on the two demons. Well then, whoshould I kill first? It was probably better to start with the GoblinFighter, although if I failed or if the other one noticed, it wouldsurely turn into a difficult fight where I would be screwed over bythe Goblin Guard.
Nevertheless, itwould be possible to push through with pure strength even if I wasnot yet used to attacking, and I definitely wanted to try it out. Idecided to start with defeating the Goblin Guard and waited for themoment when the two of them were distanced enough from each other.
Now! I leapt forwardthe moment the guard was faced the other way, however, it immediatelynoticed me with its sharp instincts and raised its shield. At thisrate, my attack would be blocked… is what I thought.
"Arghh!"
The Goblin Guardscreamed. There was no resistance at all, as the sword cut straightthrough the shield. This black sword, Greed, was much sharper than itlooked. With this, the fight was a one-sided attack.
<Gluttony skillhas been activated>
<Status update:HP +40, Strength +20, MP +10, Spirit +10, Agility +10>
<HP Enhancement(small) skill has been added>
As the robotic voicerang out, I rushed at the remaining demon. Of course, the fighter wasaware of this and tried to swing its sword intimidatingly. Seeingthis, I spoke to Greed out of curiosity.
"Hey, Greed."
"What is it?"
"Even though youwere this sharp, why were you being sold for so cheap?"
"Simple. I choosemy user."
"Then, Greedacknowledges me?"
"Hmph, be quiet."
What\'s this? Greedbecame sulky after he spoke. Still, the black blade shone evenbrighter than before. Although he was condescending, he seemed toacknowledge me for something. Well then, I should answer hisexpectations.
The Goblin Fighterwas still swinging its sword around. Regardless of how it tried tointimidate me, I paid no mind and slashed the demon with my sword.The Goblin Fighter fell as his eyes turned white.
<Gluttony skillhas been activated>
<Status update:HP +30, Strength +40, MP +10, Spirit +10, Agility +30>
Hm? No skills wereadded this time. Oh, I see. I already possessed the skill, so itwould not be duplicated. If I wanted new skills, I would have to huntdifferent monsters. Although, the status updates alone were deliciousenough.
After that, I huntedanother 25 Goblin Fighters and 10 more Goblin Guards. The hemp bagwas filled to the brim with goblin ears.
I looked at mycurrent status with <Appraisal>.
Fate Graphite Lv1
HP: 1371
Strength: 1451
MP: 481
Spirit: 481
Agility: 1051
Skills: Gluttony,Appraisal, Mind-reading, Strength Enhancement (small), HP Enhancement(small)
Hey hey, HP,Strength and Agility were already in the four digit range! MP andSpirit had not grown much since the enemies\' statuses were low inthese areas. Hahaha, I could barely remember being someone with anall 1 status just yesterday. However, there was something I wasconcerned about. The level.
A good amount ofSphere experience points came from defeating these demons, so it wasnot unusual to level up. Yet, it was strange that my level had notchanged in the slightest.
While I puzzled overthis, Greed laughed.
"It\'s theinfluence of your Gluttony skill. Those who have skills that breakthe logic of God cannot benefit from Spheres."
"Breaking God\'slogic, what…?"
"You\'ve beingdoing it all along. Killing and stealing statuses and skills isdenying God\'s logic. Such a person has no benefit from God. Yourstatus should have been all 1."
With this, some timepassed before Greed spoke again. Was he thinking about something?
"Besides… no,it\'s nothing. It\'s almost lunch time. Shall we return to thecity?"
If you leavesomething unsaid, it would only be normal that I would be worried.However, it was true that I was feeling hungry. It was time to roundup goblin hunting and return to Seyfert Capital. Given that my statushad reached four digits, it was enough for today.
Although I was notsure why, the goblins have begun to attack me desperately so I shouldstop any more recklessness anyway.
Besides, my statushad risen, so I could fight Hobgoblins in the forest further up aheadthe next time I go monster hunting. Hobgoblins were a higher levelthan Goblins, so I should be able to gain greater status and skilladvancements.
Let\'s return toRoyal Capital Seyfert.