The goblin captain’s beady red eyes locked onto them, and it let out a guttural roar that shook the walls of the tent.

  "Well" Jack said, taking a step forward and raising his saber. "Looks like this is the final round."

  Nova adjusted his grip on his spear, his knuckles white. "Let’s take it down."

  [Goblin Captain]

  Rank: 0

  Name: None

  Species: Goblin

  Affiliation: None

  Level: 0

  Css: None

  Attributes:

  Strength: 3

  Vigor: 3

  Dexterity: 2

  Speed: 2

  Intelligence: 2

  Wisdom: 1

  Will: 0

  Luck: 0

  Both Nova and Jaced at the goblin captain’s stats, exhaling softly in relief. It wasn’t beyond their capabilities.

  Nova turo Jack, his tone nont. “Whik are you taking?”

  Jaswered without hesitation, “The right.” Then, with a quice toward the goblin captain, he added, “Don’t stay in one spot for too long. Keep moving. This thing’s got low dexterity and speed—we use that against it.”

  Nova rolled his eyes but nodded. “Yeah, I figured that out, y’know?” He shifted his stance, preparing to take the left fnk.

  As if on cue, both of them spri the same time. The goblin captain had barely finished r and readying itself for battle when it noticed two figures charging at it like titans. Caught off guard, it hesitated, unsure which target to focus on.

  Its indecision didn’t st long—instinctively, it turoward the hreat.

  Unfortunately for Nova, that hreat was him.

  “Ah, e on!” Nova cursed, brag himself as he shouted, “You lucky bastard, this one’s on me! Hit him, Jack!”

  A faint smile tugged at Jack’s lips as he dashed toward the goblin captain’s side. The creature, pletely focused on Nova, failed to notice the swift approach. Jack didn’t waste the opportunity—his saber fshed, slig ly into the goblin captain’s exposed side. A deep, jagged wound opened, blood spilling out in thick rivulets.

  The goblin captain froze mid-charge, its body jerking as if jolted by a surge of pain. Then came the roar—a deafening, guttural cry that echoed through the battlefield. Enraged, it began swinging its rusty sword and battered shield in a wild frenzy, thrashing at everything around it.

  Nova and Jack stood a few paces away, calmly watg the goblin captain’s chaotic rampage.

  Jack smirked, his tone casual as he said, “Let’s just wait for this big guy to tire himself out. Then we finish the job.”

  Nova gave a small nod, his eyes never leaving the goblin captain. “Fine, but just so you know” he said with a grin, “this kill’s still mine.”

  Jack chuckled, saying nothing more as they watched the goblin captain rage on.

  After five minutes of relehrashing, the goblin captain’s frenzy subsided. Its senses returned, and its heavy, bored breaths filled the air. It dropped its dented shield, desperate to recover faster. As it panted and steadied itself, its eyes finally fixed owo t figures standing motionless nearby.

  The goblin captain froze for a moment, realizing that the two giants hadn’t lifted a finger during its eburst. They stood there, calm and posed, almost as if they’d been watg a performance. And, in a way, they had.

  Nova broke the silence, a light ugh esg him. “Look at that. This little guy finally noticed us. I was starting to think he was auditioning for a solo show.”

  Jack sighed and shot him an exasperated look. “Man, you be serious for once?”

  Nova instantly quipped, “Nah, you’re the serious one here.”

  Jack shook his head, a mix of annoyand fondness crossing his face. Sometimes this best friend of his was an absolute pain. “Let’s just finish this guy off. We’ve got better things to do.”

  Nova smirked and replied, “Sure, sure. You stay back, though. o strain yourself, old man.” Without waiting for a response, he dashed toward the exhausted goblin captain, spear in hand.

  Jack stood there, momentarily stuhen he shouted, “I’M ONLY A COUPLE MONTHS OLDER THAN YOU!” His voice echoed as he bolted after Nova, saber ready.

  Nova reached the goblin captain first, his movements quid precise. The spear pierced through the monster’s neck with a satisfying ch. The goblin captain staggered, its life slipping away, yet it wasn’t done. With o surge of defia raised its rusty sword and swung it down at Nova in a desperate attack.

  Caught off guard, Nova tried to sidestep, but the strike was too fast. He braced for impact.

  At the st sed, Jack appeared, his saber g against the goblin captain’s desding bde. Sparks flew as the redirected strike missed Nova entirely.

  Nova took a shaky step back, exhaling sharply. “You know” he muttered, “I had that under trol.”

  Jack lowered his saber, gng at him with an unimpressed expression. “Sure you did” he deadpanned.

  The goblin captain finally colpsed, its lifeless body hitting the ground with a dull thud. A moment of silence followed, broken only by the ragged breaths of the two batants. Then, as if on cue, a notification echoed in their minds.

  [Received 500 Stat EXP][Spear proficreased][Skill: Spear Thrust has been learned][Mission: Kill all the goblins in the vilge has been pleted]

  Rewards materialized before Nova's eyes:

  Item: Goblin Syer’s MedallionA medallion imbued with the essence of tless defeated goblins. Grants the wearer increased damage (+15%) against goblin-type enemies aened perception of hidden enemies within a 10-meter radius.Gold: 50 sEXP: 150Title: GoblierminatorThis title enhances your reputation in towns and cities, increasing rewards for future quests involving monster extermination.

  There were so many notifications flooding Nova's mind that he didn’t know where to start. His eyes darted from one alert to another, overwhelmed by the sheer amount of information.

  He decided to focus ohing first: the Stat EXP he’d been accumuting sihe mission began. However, he was stuck. He didn’t uand the differeween Stat EXP and EXP, and there was only one persorusted to expin it.

  Turning his head slowly, Nova’s gaze locked onto Jack, a mischievous grin creeping onto his face. “Hey man, you know I like yht?” he said, his tone dripping with shameless charm.

  Jack let out an exasperated sigh, already sensing where this was going. “What do you need now?” he asked, rubbing his temple.

  Nova wasted no time. “Look, I’ve beeing Stat EXP and EXP, but what’s the difference? Also, I kept seeing something about ‘Spear proficy’ whenever I got Stat EXP. Care to expin?”

  Jack could only shake his head. He was just as o all of this as Nova, but thanks to his passion fs, he’d mao figure out a few things during their short time in this strange world. He decided to share what he knew.

  “Alright, listen up” Jack began. “There are two types of EXP we get. Stat EXP, as the name suggests, is used to directly increase your stats without needing to level up. From what I’ve seen, you need 500 Stat EXP to get 1 free stat point that you allocate however you want.”

  Nova nodded, his curiosity piqued.

  “As for Spear proficy” Jack tinued, “it increases the more you kill with that on. Basically, the more you use a specific on type, the better you get at it. And when you unlock a skill, like your Spear Thrust, it’s best to level it up by using it in battle or through dedicated practice. Skills improve with use.”

  Nova listetentively, taking in every word. This was vital information, and without it, he knew he’d struggle to keep up in this new life. After a moment of ption, he gave a fident nod. “Got it. Makes sense.”

  With that, he called up his status s, eager to review everything he had gained from this adventure.

  ‘Status’

  [Status]

  Rank: 0

  Name: Nova Grey

  Species: Human

  Affiliation: None

  Level: 0 (150/500)

  Css: None

  Titles: Goblierminator

  Stat Points: 13

  Attributes:

  Strength: 4

  Vigor: 3

  Dexterity: 3

  Speed: 4

  Intelligence: 6

  Wisdom: 6

  Will: 6

  Luck: 10

  Skills

  Active: Spear Thrust (0) (0/500)

  “Hm, I have 13 Stat points to distribute…” Nova thought out loud, but before he could say anything to Jack, his friend interrupted him.

  “You really do take me for a library, don’t you? Bet you don’t even know what those stats mean, right?” Jack said with a smirk.

  Nova, as usual, nodded without shame.

  Jack sighed. “Alright, listen up. Strength is pretty straightforward. It boosts your physical power—your punches, kicks, and ohe higher it is, the more damage you’ll deal. Vigor increases your body’s defense and vitality. It’s like body tempering. Think of it like this: the higher yor, the more resilient you’ll be, your injuries will heal faster, and your stamina will be greater. Dexterity’s all about agility and explosive speed. High enough, and you’ll be able to perform moves that seem almost impossible and use your power more effitly. Speed, well, that’s just how fast you are in a straight-up sense—your maximum speed.”

  “Intelligence should affeana capacity, while Wisdom’s all about trol—basically, your brain processes things faster and gives you better trol over mana. As for Will, I have no idea. Luck, though… it’s probably reted to finding rare items, gettier drops, or maybe eveing out of tight spots alive. I’m not 100% sure about that oher” Jack expiaking a deep breath after that long expnation.

  Nova listened ily to Jack's expnation, then began to sider his options carefully.

  ‘Should I focus on Strength? But if I fa enemy with high dexterity and speed, I won’t even know how I died…’ He thought to himself. ‘I’ve already started with the crappiest Css, so survival is my priority. I o secure that first. Speed should e first, theerity, and stly, Wisdom. If I increase my body’s speed and make my mind fast enough to process it, I’ll be able to keep up.’

  Nova slowly made up his mind, vihat this was the best path for him at this stage. He’d just have to bear with it until he reached the mid-te game, where he could finally start reaping the rewards. But for now… he and Jack were the weakest humans oh.

  With that, he focused and allocated his points accly. Once he finished, he called up his status.

  [Status]

  Rank: 0

  Name: Nova Grey

  Species: Human

  Affiliation: None

  Level: 0 (150/500)

  Css: None

  Titles: Goblierminator

  Stat Points: 0

  Attributes:

  Strength: 4

  Vigor: 3

  Dexterity: 8

  Speed: 10

  Intelligence: 6

  Wisdom: 8

  Will: 6

  Luck: 10

  Skills

  Active : Spear Thrust (0) (0/500)

  ‘Good, I already feel the ges. My thinking speed has skyrocketed. Now that I’ve upgraded my Stats, I fidently say that 3 is the average human’s benchmark, and 6 should be humanity’s cap. That means I’ve broken through the limits of human potential in three different areas. Pretty cool.’ Nova thought to himself, a sense of satisfa washing over him.

  He started doing small sprints, and the difference was clear. Then he pushed himself, testing his maximum speed. To his surprise, it broke the current Olympian record—his top speed now reached 65 km/h.

  ‘Why am I shaking so badly?’ Nova wondered, a huge grin spreading across his face. The look he wore would have sent shivers down anyone’s spine.

  Jack wasn't paying attention, too focused oing his own progress. But even if he had been looking, he wouldn’t have been surprised by Nova’s look. His friend was a freak, and Jaew it all too well. If he had to categorize the danger level of every human, none of them would even e close to Nova.

  By society’s standards, Nova wasn’t human.