From the cliff above, the goblin camp no longer looked like a scattered collection of enemies—it looked like a structure. Alive, organized, and dangerous in a way that raw numbers alone couldn't explain. Arin stood at the edge, his gaze fixed on the shifting movement below, but there was no trace of hesitation in his eyes. He wasn't looking at them like prey anymore. He was studying them like a problem waiting to be solved. Patterns revealed themselves the longer he watched—the rotation of patrols, the placement of guards, the spacing between watchtowers. Every movement had rhythm. Every rhythm had a weakness.
Kael, however, was still stuck on the scale of it.
"…Yeah… no," he muttered under his breath, staring at the sea of movement below. "We're not fighting five hundred goblins."
Arin didn't answer immediately. His eyes continued tracking the camp, absorbing every detail until the chaos began to make sense. Only then did he speak.
"…We're not."
Kael blinked, glancing at him. "…Oh?"
"We're not fighting them," Arin continued, his voice calm, almost indifferent. "…We're destroying them."
A pause settled between them.
Then Kael slowly turned toward him, a grin forming despite the situation. "…Okay… now that sounds interesting."
Arin lowered himself slightly, still focused on the camp. "…Look carefully."
Kael followed his gaze this time, forcing himself to stop seeing the mass and start seeing the structure. And then he noticed it—the center. The heart of the camp. The large tent, heavily guarded, standing like the core of everything around it.
"…That thing?" Kael asked quietly.
Arin nodded faintly. "…That's where it breaks."
A brief silence passed as Kael studied the distance, the guards, the movement around it. "…You're thinking of going straight for it?"
"…Not directly."
Arin's eyes shifted slightly, calculating angles, height, timing.
Then he looked at Kael.
"…Is your ability on cooldown?"
Kael shook his head. "…No."
That was all Arin needed.
"…Good," he said. Then, after a brief pause, his voice dropped just enough to carry weight. "…Then imagine something."
Kael tilted his head slightly. "…Like what?"
Arin turned his gaze back toward the center of the camp. "…A rock."
Kael blinked. "…A rock?"
"…As big as you can summon," Arin clarified. "…Above the tent."
Silence followed.
Kael's grin slowly widened as the idea settled in.
"…Oh."
Arin's voice remained calm, but there was something sharper beneath it now. "…If it kills that thing—good."
A pause.
"…If it doesn't…"
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"…It will still do exactly what we need."
Kael let out a quiet breath. "…Cause chaos."
"…And force them to gather at the center," Arin finished.
The realization clicked fully into place.
Kael exhaled slowly, excitement flickering in his expression. "…And when they do…"
Arin didn't look at him.
"…Then I use my ability."
No more explanation was needed.
Kael stepped forward slightly, his expression shifting from amusement to focus. This wasn't like summoning a weapon. This was bigger. Heavier. It would cost more.
But it would be worth it.
He closed his eyes.
Visualized.
A massive rock.
Dense. Heavy. Crushing.
Suspended above the center of the camp.
For a moment—
Nothing happened.
Then—
The air in front of him distorted.
Faint at first.
Then stronger.
Energy gathered, pulling at something unseen, forcing it into shape. Kael's expression tightened as the strain hit him immediately, heavier than anything he had summoned before.
"…Come on…" he muttered under his breath.
Below them, the camp remained unaware.
Unprepared.
Then—
It appeared.
High above the tent.
A massive, jagged mass of stone, hanging in the air for the briefest moment—
Before gravity took over.
And it fell.
Fast.
Violent.
Unstoppable.
Kael opened his eyes just in time to see it descend.
"…Oh shit…"
The impact came a second later.
A deafening crash tore through the forest as the rock slammed into the center of the camp, crushing everything beneath it. The ground shook, the force rippling outward as debris and bodies were thrown aside.
For a single moment—
Silence.
Then—
Chaos.
Screeches filled the air as goblins scattered, panicked, disoriented. Others rushed toward the center, drawn by instinct, by noise, by the sudden destruction of their core.
Exactly as planned.
Kael exhaled sharply, his body already feeling the drain. "…Yeah… that definitely got their attention."
Arin didn't respond.
His eyes were locked onto the movement below.
Watching.
Waiting.
Counting.
As goblins converged toward the center, the structure of the camp collapsed completely. Order turned into panic. Formation turned into crowd.
A single point.
A single opportunity.
Kael glanced at him, a grin breaking through the exhaustion. "…Alright…"
"…Let's see what you can do."
Arin stepped forward.
Calm.
Precise.
"…Now," he said quietly.
"…we end this."
Mission Update
Fourth Mission: Goblin Kill Count — 68 / 100
The hunt was no longer controlled.
It was about to become a massacre.