For starters, I decided to check the location of the traps and soon disarmed them. I didn’t wait for the goblins to show up since it was early in the morning, after all. At the same time, it would be easier to target them by watching them leave their fortress.

  ‘I have some provisions. Should I try to ambush them at night? I bet that I could gain more rewards by sniping the archers on the walls.’

  That was risky, since that would make it clear that someone was hunting them. It also would be troublesome if I am forced to run away at night. It wouldn’t be difficult to get lost instead. In the best-case scenario, I would be luring the monsters to our fortress.

  In the end, I decided to just hunt the monsters for a bit longer and see how my parameters affected my strength. Truth be told, I didn’t notice any changes after the level up. Regardless, around seven in the morning, I finished disarming all the traps in the direction of our fortress and then began to watch the goblins’ base. It only took a couple of minutes before I saw some of them leaving the fortress… five of them.

  ‘This could be a problem.’

  Not only their numbers were a problem, their weapons too. Three of them had bows, simple and low-quality bows, but they didn’t have to charge at me to attack with them. I hesitated for a moment, but soon shook my head. I couldn’t keep running away… the more I get used to this kind of situation, the easier I will adapt to this place and the stronger I will get too.

  I took a deep breath and then cleared my mind. The only thought that I had was putting the arrows on the heads of the monsters. I wasn’t going to fail… still, just to be sure, I used my free points to increase my dexterity. I probably could make the arrows more powerful by increasing my strength. No, that would definitely happen, but for now, I just wanted to hit them no matter what.

  I followed the enemies until they reached the area of the first trap and soon left the tall grass when they realized that the spike trap was exposed. Without hesitation, I nocked and unleashed an arrow in no time. The arrow hit the nape of the first target, even though I had aimed a bit lower.

  When the creature fell and the monsters looked at the body, I was already unleashing the next arrow. The poor goblin got hit in the head and fell dead immediately… The other three had the chance to see me, but before the third archer had the chance nock its own arrow, it was hit in the head as well.

  A smile almost escaped from my mouth while I was readying the next arrow. The remaining two charged and soon jumped and threw their spears. I was surprised to see them flying straight at me, so I threw myself to the side to avoid them. I heard the sound of them crossing the air a few centimeters away from me, making the hair on my back stand as I felt a weird cold against my skin.

  I got up while already aiming and unleashed the arrow… the projectile hit the target five meters away, but then I was forced to drop the bow and grab my knife when the final goblin jumped toward me.

  ‘Die, cursed, human. Die!’

  I didn’t hesitate for a moment. I swung my knife straight at the goblin’s head, aiming to end the fight as quickly as possible. However, the creature reacted faster than I expected, raising its left arm to block the strike. My blade cut into its flesh, but it wasn’t a fatal blow. Before I could pull back for another attack, the goblin lunged forward and grabbed my wrist, its sharp teeth snapping dangerously close to my skin. A wave of urgency hit me, but my body moved on instinct. I immediately pressed my other hand against the goblin’s forehead, shoving it back with all my strength to keep those fangs away.

  For a moment, we were locked in a struggle, my grip pushing against its head while it tightened its hold on my arm. The goblin was surprisingly strong, far more than I had anticipated from its small frame. I could feel my muscles straining, my heart pounding as I fought to keep its jaws away. At that moment, I wasn’t thinking about the no-damage reward or any kind of strategy. The only thing that mattered was stopping the creature from sinking its teeth into my flesh. I gritted my teeth, focusing on breaking free and finishing the fight before the goblin had another chance to retaliate.

  In the end, I pushed my body forward and then let it fall over the monster. The creature grunted in pain, but I used the extra weight of my body to push the head of the monster up and down several times. Each strike made the monster groan in pain more and more until it started to get dizzy. When the grip of the monster grew weak, I used all my might to free the knife and then pierce the throat of the beast.

  The creature trembled a bit in agony, but soon it stopped moving and I got up, covered in blood. I could click my tongue in annoyance… I felt my chest trembling thanks to the effort that I made. Even though it only took a couple of seconds, the tension was just too damn annoying.

  ‘The smell of blood will make them find me with more ease… I can wash it a bit in the ocean, but then I won’t be able to watch their base.’

  The chance of knowing where all the enemies are and of having the power of the pre-emptive strike was something that I could afford to lose, so I could only sigh in exasperation. I stopped to think for a bit longer and then decided to use that as an opportunity as well. They might sense the smell of blood, but if they only find the bodies of the goblins, they won’t be able to tell that I was nearby.

  It was a bold move, but it could work. I got unlucky since five of those things came this time around, but this shouldn’t be something that was to happen often. I looked around and tried to check what I could use. I still could see the goblins’ fortress in the distance and while there are some trees around, they wouldn’t be that useful aside from taking over.

  I decided to drag the bodies of the monsters far away from each other… that way, I would be able to know where the monsters would go and then my aim would be easier. If they are stupid enough, they will move away from each other.

  ‘I didn’t have time to notice it, but I guess that my aim improved a bit.’

  I decided to check that by hitting the same spot on a tree over and over again and then guess my best distance now. I was pretty used to hitting targets thirty meters away, but after some tests, I could hit things with ninety percent accuracy at around 50 and 45 yards away from me.

  ‘I guess in due time, I will be able to snipe those freaks from one hundred meters away… I need to increase my strength to make the arrows fly in a straight line toward the targets as well, so it might take a while.’

  I decided to lie low on the tall grass and just wait to see what happens since I could see two sides of the enemy’s base as well. Even if I didn’t have much cover, that would be helpful. Thanks to that, I saw other groups heading west. Much to my surprise, that group had a leader, and it was a goblin that was even taller than me. Four goblin spearmen were following the creature as well.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  ‘Those guys I killed must have left to hunt for food and check the traps, but these guys want something else.’

  That goblin leader looked like he hit the gym for a while. His skin shouldn’t be that easy to pierce with my arrows. For now, they were fine, but they eventually would lose durability as well. It was better to upgrade my arrows and bow before I try to pick a fight with one of their big shots.

  Regardless, my plan worked and several groups of goblins appeared in the area and when they noticed the smell of blood, they went to check the direction of the bodies and that made their footsteps easy to follow. Out of fifteen of them, thirteen died with arrows on their faces and all that happened before noon.

  That was a good hunt, but soon I clicked my tongue when I heard some voices coming from the north. I raised my head just a bit to see some people that came from the human fortress’ direction.

  ‘Only five? They seem relaxed… ah, right? The bodies of the goblins that I killed yesterday vanished, so they didn’t find any signs of danger until now, aside from the traps.’

  That seemed like a scouting party, a very relaxed one given that they had two warriors, two mages and a priest walking side by side. I remained hidden until the last moment, only when they were ten meters away they began to feel the smell of blood and soon they saw the fortress in the distance as well. They pointed their weapons at me when I raised from the tall grass with my bow in hand.

  “Can I help you?”

  “You are…”

  They showed varied expressions when they recognized me. The warriors seemed a bit annoyed while the others looked around with worried expressions. I wondered if some rumors about me were starting to spread. If he wanted to keep his nice guy image, Carlos wouldn’t talk about me to others, but the other guys that were with him probably began to talk about me.

  “Just a hunter that is setting a trap to some monsters. If you don’t mind, can you head somewhere else?”

  “... Did you do this?”

  The leader of the group stepped forward when he saw the bodies of the goblins that I had killed. It seemed that he was going to pretend that he didn’t hear my words. That was troubling. He had short black hair and a good physique as well. He kept walking with a round shield and a one handed sword in hand, but he didn’t look particularly tired.

  “Well?”

  “Well, what?”

  “Aren’t you going to answer my question?”

  “Only after you answer mine.”

  The mood shifted almost instantly, the air between us growing heavier with tension. My words had clearly struck a nerve. The warriors stiffened, and the mages exchanged glances, their previous ease giving way to mild discomfort. They didn’t like how I had pointed out their carelessness, especially since I hadn’t said anything wrong. It was one thing to make a mistake, but being called out on it so directly in front of their peers probably stung their pride. The leader’s jaw tightened slightly, but he didn’t immediately snap back at me, which meant he wasn’t completely ruled by his emotions. Still, he definitely wasn’t happy.

  While their reaction was a little troublesome, I had no regrets about what I’d said. I knew all too well that acting like a pushover wouldn’t do me any favors. If I let people talk down to me or push me around just because they had a group, it would set a precedent that I wasn’t willing to accept. It was better to make my stance clear from the beginning. If they wanted to talk, we’d talk as equals, not as some scouting group interrogating a lone hunter. Whether they liked it or not, I wasn’t about to let them dictate the conversation.

  “We will leave and not bother you, but we need to know what is ahead. In order to make sure that others won’t be surprised by any kind of attacks or ambushes.”

  It looks like their leader decided to compromise. I wasn’t sure how much he was being genuine, but I couldn’t just keep assuming things. As long as I tell them some things, they will be satisfied and if they don’t respect my hunting grounds, then things can start to get sour and I won’t need to worry about anything.

  “Pretty much all the area from our fortress to this place is the goblins’ territory since it is filled with traps and they check the area often for targets and things to hunt.”

  “Anything else that you can share with us?”

  “No.”

  “Okay, thank you for cooperating with us.”

  That guy turned around and then said something to his friends and soon they turned and left as well. I watched them for a while until they disappeared in the distance. I couldn’t help but sigh. Perhaps it was a good idea to change my way of hunting, just in case.

  While I was considering my options, the afternoon came and ended… Some goblins showed up to attack, but they didn’t cause much trouble in the end. I kept my eye on the other side of the enemy’s camp and soon found that big goblin returning to the base while carrying a big boar-like creature on its shoulder… it seemed that it had left to hunt as well.

  Nothing else unusual happened for the rest of the day, which should have been a relief, but instead, it left me feeling uneasy. Some people like to say that no news is good news, but I wasn’t so sure about that. Silence could just as easily mean that trouble was brewing beneath the surface, waiting for the right moment to strike. I didn’t like not knowing where things stood or whether my surroundings were truly under control. Up until now, I had been able to operate freely, managing my own hunts without interference, but that had changed the moment those people found my hunting grounds.

  Now, there was an uncertainty that I couldn’t ignore. Would they return? Would they decide to stake a claim to this area, or worse, bring even more people with them? There were too many questions and not enough answers, and that made it impossible to relax. If I wanted to keep things in my favor, I would need to adapt before someone else forced me to a troublesome position. For now, I decided to keep my eyes open and take things one step at a time, but I knew I couldn’t afford to stay passive for long.

  ‘I am not entirely sure if I can claim that entire area as my hunting ground, but even if I can’t, people will regret taking that from me since they don’t know about that variation of a goblin.’

  I wanted to smile when I saw my new parameters and the money that fell in my hands, but just as I had imagined, I could see some people around paying attention to how much I had received. Even if they couldn’t tell from a distance, they could tell based on the color and have a fair estimation.

  ‘I am not really that surprised… just annoyed. Oh, yeah… I have to check that too.’

  I wasn’t surprised to see the parameters of my bow, but I didn’t know that I could do that. In any case, the crystal and its power could tell how much a value was better than the other, but without that, I would have to train my eye. Regardless, I decided to check some shops before getting ready for dinner.