I quickly looked at the map where I could see several red dots, confirming that a fair distance away, goblins were hiding behind the boulders waiting to ambush us.

Barely a few seconds later, Audrey halted in the air and narrowed her eyes. "Are those…" Immediately, her eyes widened and she shouted, "I think I can see goblins ahead!"

She had barely said that when a wooden arrow suddenly flew through the air, aimed straight towards her head. But just before it could make contact, I could see a notification flicker in my vision.

[The character Audrey Seres Platini has activated the exclusive skill: Sleight of Hand.]

The arrow struck her head… only for her form to fade like smoke. Then, a split second later, she reappeared a meter to the left, completely unharmed.

A large bow suddenly took form in her hand, and behind her, a quiver materialized, filled with metal arrows.

She didn't waste any time and immediately notched three arrows at once. Then she shut an eye, drew the string, and released the arrows in a single breath.

They whistled through the air in a tight spread, then struck the heads of the three lead goblins with sickening thuds. Some of the other goblins around immediately began to shriek in a frantic, guttural tongue and lunged out of their hiding spots, while the rest aimed their crude bows at her.

In the next second, Audrey had already notched another set of arrows. She pivoted mid-air to dodge two incoming arrows, then released her own barrage in return.

At the same time this was happening, the other members of the party had already quickly summoned their bonds to their weapon forms.

I pulled out my wakizashi from my shadow while Aika descended from the sky. As she did, a feather detached from her and quickly shifted into Arlo. In a seamless blur of light, Aika shifted into a katana, landing perfectly in my grip.

"Woah…" Leon muttered, causing me to snap my gaze to him. "I like this weapon of yours, Cedric."

He looked down at the cat that was getting ready to lunge from his hand. "Can we use this, Uriel?"

Uriel shone with a blinding golden light, then shifted into a matching golden katana and a wakizashi.

"Tsk!" I clicked my tongue and looked away.

'Damn protagonist.'

Leon tested the weight of the weapons in his hand, giving them a few experimental swings.

"Nice, nice…"

Like mine, Leon's bond was unique when taking its weapon form. While my bond manifested as twin blades, Leon's bond didn't have a fixed weapon form. His exclusive attribute [Master of Arms] granted him the ability to master all weapons in existence. Because of this, his bond could take any form Leon desired. It could even manifest as a dual set if that was what the situation called for.

It was enough to say that this guy really is the definition of an overpowered protagonist.

I shook my head and looked toward the oncoming horde.

The goblins were green, two-meter-tall monstrosities with jagged teeth and muscular limbs. Most of them held wooden spears, while the majority held swords made of bone.

With their size and speed, it was as if we were fighting athletic warriors, rather than the scrawny creatures usually depicted in the stories I used to read back on Earth.

The crazy thing was that, these creatures were skilled combatants.

However, without any hesitation, I joined the others and lunged at the horde. As I closed the distance, the first goblin swept its weapon in a horizontal slash.

I could see its movements perfectly and I could react in time. Despite it being skilled in combat, at the end of the day, it was still just a grade one creature.

And so, I ducked beneath the slash, then swung my katana upward in a clean arc that ran from its torso up and out its shoulder. Before the creature could even collapse, I had already spun toward my next target and drove my wakizashi into the head of another goblin.

I wrenched the blade free, then pivoted to dodge the spear of another. Then I dropped low and swept my katana across its ankles. As the creature's balance broke, I surged upward, driving my blade through its chest.

One goblin shrieked, leapt, and descended with its weapon raised high for a crushing blow.

I stepped out of its way and it slammed into the ground where I had been standing, but then it quickly spun to face me with its eyes bloodshot with rage.

However, I was faster.

My blade gleamed as it took off the hand of the creature. And then, using both blades, I crossed them at its throat like a pair of shears and decapitated it. The head spun through the air for a moment before landing in the dirt.

[EXP: 180]

[EXP: 180]

[EXP: 180]

[EXP: 180]

The rest of the party were also holding their own with terrifying ease.

Dion stabbed a goblin with his spear and slammed its heavy body to the ground. "Tsk. Stinking cretins."

He didn't even bother to look at the dying creature as he yanked his spear tip free, already eyeing the next target with a look of pure disdain.

"What the hell are goblins doing all the way here?" Evelyn asked with a frown as she landed on top of a goblin, driving both blades of her kama into its chest and pinning it to the stony ground.

"Maybe, they are migrating because of the weather?" Dion replied as he dodged the spear of a goblin. "It's colder over here so…"

He didn't complete his thought and spun his spear, driving it into the goblin's neck sending out a spray of green blood.

…Before long, the group had nearly wiped out the entire horde.

Even Celeste had claimed her share of kills. I watched as she lunged at a goblin, which responded by extending its spear in a desperate thrust. She managed to duck under the weapon and drove her dagger deep into the creature's side. She pulled the blade out, plunged it in once more, and then struck its neck before finally finishing it off by stabbing its temple.

Then without slowing, she jumped and tapped her feet against a boulder, before leaping off and using the momentum to pounce on her next target.

Within the next minute, the entire space around us was littered with the bodies of goblins and painted with their dark green blood.

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