Chapter 9: My First Labyrinth (3)
The reversed sexual norms of the Pan continent were remnants of the War of the Fallen Gods.
This change applied not just to humans, but to monsters as well.
That’s why I knew it was common for monsters, especially females, to have stronger sexual desires… but I never expected them to go berserk just by making eye contact.
“Young cock! Stop right there, gob!”
“Kyaaaaaaak!!!”
“Give me your seed, gob!”
“Don’t come at me with your breasts out!!”
“It’s my first time too, so I’ll be gentle, gob!”
“I don’t need a goblin’s virginity!!”
It was fortunate that I spotted the goblin first. It was also fortunate that I secretly shot it in the back of the head with a crossbow.But the problem was the crudely made arrow flew off in a strange trajectory and missed. An even bigger problem was the goblin went into heat the moment it saw my face.
What was with this intense reaction? Even if monsters are supposed to live and die by instinct, this was excessive!
“Please help me, Miss Lydia! At this rate, I’ll be unable to marry…!”
“No. Jonah, you can do it. Go for it!”
Lydia cheered me on with an expressionless face. The fact that she was only cheering me on without actually helping was incredibly frustrating.
“Just a little bit! You can help me out just a bit!”
“Got it, gob! I’ll just put in the tip, gob!”
“I wasn’t talking to you!!”
I turned around in irritation. And immediately regretted it.
A hooked nose that took up half of its face, and green skin filled with blackheads and acne. Its expression, full of sexual desire, was grotesquely distorted.
As if the face wasn’t bad enough, the body that continued below was even worse.
Wearing nothing but a loincloth around its waist, its attire was quite revealing. Thanks to that, the view of her sagging breasts and unusually swollen stomach compared to her limbs was in full view.
Lastly, information I truly did not want to know nor see, but every time it chased after me, the liquid flowing down its legs was…
“Aaaaaaah!!”
A scream erupted involuntarily, a testament to the immense mental anguish I was experiencing.
Indeed, since my arrival in this world, my sense of personal safety, particularly regarding my chastity, had never been threatened.
This was partly because the women of the Pan continent were, on the whole, quite beautiful, and my perceptions and desires had remained consistent with those from my previous life.
But more importantly, I had never truly found myself in a perilous situation.
The closest I had come to danger was when I was abducted by the Twin Daggers Clan… but Lydia rescued me, rendering the situation ultimately harmless.
But now? An unsightly creature that perfectly fits the description of a “little demon” is charging at me with a club, intent on ‘eating’ me. And it appeared to be quite formidable.
A shiver of fear ran through me, causing me to tense up involuntarily.
This vivid fear quickly transformed into another emotion.
I should be the master of my fate. My body might be young, but my soul belongs to a grown man. Though it seemed less significant now, I still had special advantages from inhabiting this body.
And yet, here I was, quaking in fear at the sight of a goblin, not even a dragon?
“That, fatherf—er….”
Rage ignited within me, setting my chest aflame. I had to kill that goblin…!
Its appearance was even more repulsive than I had imagined, but upon closer inspection, I noticed its running speed was slightly slower than mine.
However, the disparity in strength was glaring. The mere sound of its club slicing through the air, even without a proper swing, was menacing.
“Gobubut! Insult me more, gob! I like men who resist, gob!”
“Eww!”
Luckily, the goblin had let its guard down. Naturally. Even though it had been cursed with madness and transformed into a monster, it had gained strength on par with that of an adult human.
To such a goblin, I must have seemed like easy prey. And indeed, I was fleeing in absolute terror.
…Well, it was not a threat to my life, but to my chastity.
If I had to describe it, it felt similar to when a cockroach you were cautiously trying to catch suddenly flew towards you.
“Ah.”
Only then did I realize. The reason I was trembling wasn’t because of fear, but disgust.
After overcoming the physiological revulsion, my mind surprisingly calmed down. Conversely, my entire body felt like it was bursting with vitality.
No. My body must have always been like this. It was just that the current situation demanded the utmost agility, and I knew, if nothing else, I wouldn’t be outdone by a mere goblin in agility.
I forcefully pressed my legs into the ground and leapt. A brief moment of being airborne. During that time, I curled my body and twisted backward.
Maintaining the direction I was running, just reversing the orientation of my body.
“Gob?!”
The goblin halted, startled by the sudden face-to-face. At that moment, I sprung up like a spring, pushing off the ground with my curled body.
Screech-
The foot that first touched the ground stretched out, stopping my flying body in its tracks.
Thud!
The second step quickened my speed again towards the direction of the goblin.
Although yelping in surprise, the goblin still swung the club in its hand.
“Go, Gobb!”
For a reflexive action, it was quite an accurate judgment. A proper hit would not only break my momentum but likely break my bones and send me tumbling to the ground. …But I just needed to dodge.
Taking a deep breath, I tilted my body to the point where it looked like I would fall.
I was almost touching the ground, and thanks to that, the club lost its target and flew over my head, crashing to the ground.
Thud!
The club had become stuck in the ground. Dirt clods flying in all directions. Taking this as a signal, I lunged forward with the dagger gripped tightly in my right hand.
The target was the arm of the creature, which was frozen in motion after just having swung its weapon.
“Huap!”
Psshk.
“Gobuuuuk!!”
Despite not exerting much force, the dagger penetrated the green skin without resistance, staining the goblin’s upper arm with blood.
Indeed. This must be what they meant when they said to compensate for lacking specs with equipment. The weapon was sharp, making penetration easy.
Its face was distorted by fear and pain. Conversely, my face must be smiling from the excitement of battle. A contrast to just a moment ago. I chuckled inwardly as I stretched out my leg.
Goblins have many weaknesses, but there was only one that would help me now: their lack of lower field of vision.
Goblins had short necks, and though their arms and legs were thin, their bellies were unusually swollen. Naturally, it was hard for them to check what was below them.
Perhaps it’s because the pain from the stab wound to the forearm has narrowed its field of vision. The creature doesn’t notice me sneakily tripping it.
While striking the back of its heel with the heel of my shoe, I simultaneously exerted force on the arm holding the dagger.
Though my strength was nothing to boast of, it wasn’t to the point that I couldn’t push away a goblin with one leg hanging in the air.
Thud!
“Gah!”
The goblin, having hit the back of its head, collapsed to the ground. Even in this situation, the monster, being a monster, instinctively tried to switch its club to its good hand.
“This is mine now.”
But my left hand was quicker to steal the club from it. There’s no moment more vulnerable than when transferring an object from one hand to another, so it wasn’t that difficult.
So the goblin had both missed the timing to get up and failed to swing its weapon again. Surprisingly, instead of resisting until the end, it started to beg for its life.
“Sa, save me, please gob! It’s all my fault gob. I’ll do anything gob…just spare my life…I don’t want to die like this gob…”
A pitiful voice. However, that wasn’t a reason for me to stop. I pulled out the dagger that was stuck in its upper arm and struck down towards its chest.
Shphk!
Thanks to the sharp blade, the dagger easily sliced through the skin and muscle. However, it got stuck halfway by the ribs.
No matter how good the weapon is, it must be difficult to cut through bone with just a dagger and one hand.
The goblin writhed in pain but also showed relief at having survived. And as if to show the creature, I raised the club in my other hand high above its head.
“Just the tip! I’ll only put in the tip, so don’t worry!”
“Gob-euk?!”
I returned its words exactly as it had said them and swung the club down towards the handle of the dagger.
Thud!
With a heavy sound, the dagger that was stuck in the ribs sank all the way to the end of the blade. The goblin, possibly having its lung pierced as well, could only make a deflating sound and was no longer able to babble.
Convulsing faintly, it tried to pull out the sword that was stuck in its chest.
Press.
“Stay still.”
“…!”
My foot stepped on its hand, effectively stopping it. Considering the original difference in strength, this should have been impossible. However, what strength could a dying creature possibly muster?
Now, the only thing it could do was glare with eyes filled with resentment.
…I don’t quite understand why it looked so wronged when it brought this upon itself.
Thus, I too glared at the dying goblin until the very last moment, with my eyes wide open.
Its trembling and breathing grew weaker until, with eyes wide open, it died. Just in case, I pulled out the dagger stuck in its heart and shoved it into the goblin’s neck. You need to double-check, after all.
Slice.
With a light slice, the head fell off cleanly. Grabbing the creature’s hair in one hand, I hurried towards where Lydia was.
Then, with a broad smile, I presented the head, its final expression frozen on it.
“Miss Lydia! Miss Lydia! I won! Goblins weren’t anything special after all!”
“……”
“Wow. If I had known the dagger you lent me was this sharp, I would have used it to slash rather than stab. What a pity!”
“……”
“But well… I won, so that’s all that matters, right?! Miss Lydia, you knew this would happen, so that’s why you chose to cheer me on instead of helping, right? Thank you! I feel like I’ve learned something!”
For some reason, Lydia looked at me with a pale expression. She swallowed once and then asked cautiously.
“…Jonah. Goblins are monsters that retain a certain level of intelligence. Wasn’t it hard when it begged for its life? Didn’t you feel any sympathy?”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
“Against goblins?”
“Yes.”
“Why would I?”
“…….”
Lydia closed her eyes tightly. She grabbed my shoulder and said in a serious voice.
“…Jonah, you must become an adventurer.”
“???”
I didn’t understand why she was acting like that.