CHAPTER 61: SUSPICIOUS

*Earlier*

From this point onward, the goblin language is something we could actually understand.

A faint buzzing sound grew louder as it moved closer to the goblin cave, carried through the air until it reached the entrance.

The noise belonged to a giant beetle, its wings beating in a steady beat as it flew over the scouts.

On its back sat the bow-hobgoblin from earlier, posture straight, eyes fixed forward with an unreadable expression.

One of the goblin scouts immediately noticed the approach and shouted up. "Hey!"

The rider tilted his head slightly, his gaze flicking to the side, then lowering just enough to glance down at the scout.

For a brief moment, it seemed like he might respond.

"Hey! Where are the other guys?" the goblin scout demanded again, this time louder, the group behind him also starting to mutter among themselves.

But the bow-hobgoblin didn’t answer.

His eyes lingered for only a second before he dismissed the scout entirely, shifting his attention back to the front.

Without a word, he guided the beetle forward, steering it towards a smaller cave entrance tucked behind the enclosures that held several domesticated beasts.

"Who was that?" a kobold scout finally asked, squinting after the rider that had just flown past on the oversized beetle.

The buzzing wings left little ripples in the air, scattering dust and pebbles that tumbled down the rock face.

"Oh, him? He’s just a friend of mine," the goblin scout said, puffing his chest with a grin so wide it almost split his face.

He looked ridiculously pleased, like he was the one who’d carved the saddle and polished the beetle’s shell. "He only just landed the job as a hobgoblin scout, you know. And look at him now, already with his own beetle."

The kobold’s eyes widened, his tail flicking with that mixture of awe and envy that only made the goblin’s grin brighter. "No way... he’s so lucky. He must’ve worked so hard to get there."

"He did," the goblin agreed quickly, nodding as if he’d been there to cheer him on every step of the way. "I’ll give him that. Never skipped training and never slacked. Always serious, that one."

The kobold let out a low whistle, his sharp teeth flashing. "Makes you think maybe one day we’ll get our own chance, huh?"

"Course we will," the goblin said, and for once his voice wasn’t teasing or boastful. Just certain. "Everyone starts somewhere."

But then, as the excitement dimmed, his brows furrowed slightly. "Still... I wonder why he was in such a rush."

"Yeah," the kobold said, his voice dropping as he tilted his head. "And where are the rest of his teammates? Don’t they usually travel together?"

The goblin blinked, realizing he hadn’t thought about that part.

His gaze followed the beetle as it descended toward the entrance of the smaller cave, the rider sliding off without so much as a glance back.

"I... don’t know," he admitted, his earlier pride now twisting into mild confusion.

Both scouts stood there for a moment, watching the beetle slowly enter the smaller cave entrance, the silence between them carrying the kind of unspoken question neither wanted to be the first to answer... or they just couldn’t.

The bow-hobgoblin slid off the beetle’s back with practiced ease, landing with a dull thud before tugging gently at the reins.

"Come here, boy. Come here," he muttered, his tone flat but steady as he led the insect deeper into the cavern.

The beetle’s wings gave one last irritated buzz before folding neatly against its body, its heavy legs thudding against the stone floor with each step.

The beetle cave stretched out in neat rows, the air filled with the earthy smell of damp rock and the faint hum of countless wings.

Each opening along the wall was an enclosure, and inside every one of them rested a massive beetle, their shells glinting faintly under the torchlight.

Some of the creatures shifted as the new arrival passed by, antennae twitching, mandibles clicking softly, as if curious about the latest addition.

Turns out, it was just the usual, so they just lost interest.

The rider pulled his mount into its designated spot and gave a short nod, satisfied.

"I’m gonna go now, just calm down," he said, patting the beetle’s horn twice with a casual air.

The creature let out a low, vibrating rumble that shook through the ground, but it didn’t resist. It simply settled into the enclosure, wings flicking once before going still.

With that, the bow-hobgoblin turned on his heel and walked out without looking back.

His steps reverberated through the cavern, leaving behind only the faint buzzing of wings and the restless shuffling of armored bodies in the shadows.

"Sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t, sh*t," the bow-hobgoblin cursed internally, each repetition hammering into his skull as his nerves crawled up his spine.

His mind spiraled faster than he could keep up with, the panic chewing into his chest.

’What if they find out I left them? What if they realize I ditched the others and saved my own skin? I had to, damn it. My brother still needs me. I didn’t have a choice.’

His frantic thoughts cut short when a booming voice cracked through the air.

"Hey, Kolgar!"

The sound carried with authority, deep and sharp, jumping back and forth across the stone walls.

Kolgar — the bow-hobgoblin — froze in place like the words had pinned him down, then slowly, stiffly, turned his head toward the source.

Standing there was another hobgoblin, broader, older, and staring at him with eyes that demanded an explanation he wasn’t ready to give.

"Sh*t," Kolgar hissed under his breath, his lips barely moving.

For a second his face betrayed the panic eating away at him, but just as quickly, he forced it down.

His jaw tightened, his eyes sharpened, and the corners of his mouth lifted into the fakest look of reassurance he could manage.

The kind of expression that screamed "don’t worry about me, everything’s totally fine," even though his pulse was pounding hard enough to shake his chest.

He straightened his back, swallowed down the nervous lump in his throat, and raised his chin like he had been caught. Which in a way, was correct.

"Yes, sir Buldok?" Kolgar asked, his voice straining to sound casual while his lips pulled into a smile that looked like it belonged on a poorly carved statue.

Sweat clung to his forehead and trickled down the side of his face, betraying every ounce of the calm he was trying to fake.

Buldok squinted at him, head tilting slightly, his sharp eyes scanning Kolgar’s face like he was looking at something broken.

"W—what the hell are you doing with your face? Change it back," he barked, waving his hand in front of Kolgar trying to swipe away an extremely, and I mean EXTREMELY, bad notification.

Kolgar’s smile twitched but he kept it plastered on, doubling down on the act, because apparently his brain had decided this was the hill he was going to die on.

Buldok stared at him for another long, heavy second before dragging in a deep breath through his nose and letting it out with the loudest sigh.

"Forget about it," he muttered, shaking his head in disappointment.

His tone wasn’t even angry, it was kinda like the kind of exhausted dismissal that somehow stung worse than being yelled at.

Before Kolgar could feel the relief of that moment, Buldok’s gaze sharpened again.

"By the way," he said, turning his head just enough to glance over Kolgar’s shoulder, his eyes scanning the beetle enclosures behind him.

"Where are the other guys?" His voice was calm but heavy, carrying weight that made Kolgar’s stomach twist inside.

The air inside the cave suddenly felt thicker.

The faint buzzing of beetle wings and the scratching of their mandibles against stone bouncing back louder in the silence that followed.

Kolgar didn’t answer, more like, he couldn’t.

So he just stood there, his forced grin cracking under the pressure until it faded into something tighter, something nervous, something closer to the truth.

His lips pressed together, and his eyes betrayed the panic crawling behind them.

Buldok caught it immediately.

His expression shifted, the disappointment wiped clean and replaced with something much harsher.

His shoulders squared, and his voice dropped lower, no longer casual but edged with command. "Where are they, Kolgar?"

End of Chapter 61.

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ALT SYSTEM — USER PROFILE: ZERO

Level: 15

EXP: 39 / 150

Next Reward: Quick Sever

Global System Tracking: DISABLED

World Rank Association: UNLINKED

Stats:

STR: 20 | AGI: 10 (Affinity) | VIT: 5 | DEX: 5 | INT: 17 | WIS: 5

[Available Stat Points: 0]

[Derived Stat — MANA: 90 / 90]

Skills:

[Crimson Slash Lv. 1]

[Phantom Stride Lv. 2]

[Instinctive Blade Lv.1]

[Predictive Guard Lv.1]

[Skill Fusion Menu: Active]

[Dev Tree: Tier 0 Access Granted]

[Developer Node – Fusion Core Anchor: Active]

[Skill Slot Available — Unassigned]

Equipment:

Aged Blade Fragment (??? Rarity) (Bound)

Training Ring (+1 VIT)

Bag :)

Ring of Genorya - ???