The week flew by fast.

  And it seemed like the goblins did too—straight into their graves.

  Not only did they get annihilated, but they barely even survived a single day. Pathetic.

  Well… except for one.

  The talking goblin.

  I found him sitting outside the ruined nest, covered in dried blood, a broken sword in his lap. His breathing was heavy, his body bruised and battered.

  He looked up at me, his eyes filled with something strange. Not fear. Not anger.

  Determination.

  "I lived," he rasped.

  I crossed my arms. "That you did."

  Silence stretched between us. The forest around us was eerily quiet, the usual goblin chatter completely gone.

  "So?" I finally asked. "What did you learn?"

  The goblin tightened his grip on the broken sword. His hands trembled, but his voice was steady.

  "That we're weak," he admitted. "That power is the only thing that matters."

  I grinned.

  "Good."

  I chuckled, then burst into full-blown laughter.

  "I'm in the making of something worse than a demon—HAHAHAHA!"

  The goblin flinched but didn't back down. If anything, his grip on the broken sword tightened. His eyes, once filled with desperation, now burned with something else. Resolve.

  I crouched down to his level, staring straight into those beady little eyes. "Tell me, goblin… do you want revenge?"

  His breath hitched.

  "Do you want power?"

  His hands trembled, but he nodded.

  "Then," I grinned, standing up, "you're going to be my first experiment."

  I turned on my heel, walking away. "Follow me if you want to live long enough to see what true strength looks like."

  For a moment, there was only silence. Then, the sound of unsteady footsteps behind me.

  This is going to be fun.

  The goblin limped behind me, struggling to keep up, but he never stopped. Good.

  I kept walking, not bothering to slow down. If he wanted power, he had to prove he deserved it.

  "You got a name?" I asked without looking back.

  Silence.

  Then, after a few breaths, he spoke. "…No."

  I stopped.

  He nearly ran into me, panting heavily.

  "You survived when no one else did," I said, turning to face him. "If you want to be more than just a weak, nameless goblin, then you need a name."

  I thought for a second. What would suit him? He wasn’t strong yet, but he was determined. He was like a spark, barely flickering… but if I fed it enough, it could turn into a wildfire.

  "From now on, you're Varis."

  The goblin blinked up at me, his breath still ragged. "Varis…" He repeated the name slowly, as if tasting the weight of it.

  "Yeah. Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?" I smirked. "Better than 'Hey, goblin,' anyway."

  He looked down at his trembling hands, gripping the broken sword like it was the only thing keeping him standing. "Varis… I like it."

  "Good." I turned back around and kept walking. "Now, hurry up. You’re slow as hell."

  Varis gritted his teeth and forced himself forward, limping but refusing to stop. That’s the spirit.

  I wasn’t planning to keep a goblin as a pet, but this? This was different.

  I wasn’t raising a servant.

  I was creating a monster.

  ...

  Back at the Adventurer’s Guild, everyone had their eyes on me.

  No… not on me.

  On Varis.

  I leaned against the counter, waiting for Yuna, while Varis stood beside me. His presence alone sent waves of unease through the room.

  A goblin, inside the guild, walking freely next to an adventurer? Yeah, that was bound to turn some heads.

  Whispers spread like wildfire.

  "Is that a goblin…?"

  "Did he tame it?"

  "Wait, isn't that the guy who killed a wyvern?"

  Varis remained silent, his posture stiff. His small fingers twitched toward the hilt of his broken sword, but he didn’t move otherwise. He was feeling it—the weight of being prey in a place filled with predators.

  I glanced down at him. "Nervous?"

  Varis swallowed hard but shook his head. "No."

  "Good." I smirked. "Because this is just the beginning."

  I walked over to the quest board, scanning through the available requests. It didn’t take long to find what I was looking for—Goblin Subjugation.

  Perfect.

  I ripped the paper off the board and turned to Varis. He was still tense, standing awkwardly in the middle of the guild while adventurers whispered about him.

  My goal for now? Turn this guy into a monster.

  Why?

  Because I’m bored.

  And nothing’s more fun than creating something terrifying.

  "Come on, Varis," I said, handing the quest paper to Yuna, who stared at me like I’d gone insane. "Let’s go kill your kind."

  Varis gripped his broken sword and followed.

  ...

  In front of the goblin nest, the air was thick with the scent of damp earth and decay. Shadows flickered beyond the entrance, faint movements betraying the presence of the creatures lurking inside.

  I turned to Varis, watching him as he stared at the cave’s entrance, his fingers twitching near the hilt of his broken sword.

  "Now that we're here, are you ready to kill your own kind? For power?" My voice was calm, but the weight of my words lingered.

  Varis hesitated. His expression wavered, uncertainty flickering in his yellow eyes. He didn't want to do this—I could tell. But after a moment, he clenched his jaw and answered, his voice low but firm.

  "Whatever it takes... I don't like being weak."

  Good. He was learning.

  I opened my inventory, pulling out a proper sword—nothing fancy, just a solid steel blade, way better than the broken scrap he’d been clinging to. Without a word, I handed it to him.

  Then, I reached into my bag and pulled out a potion of healing, uncorking it before splashing it over his wounds. The liquid shimmered as it soaked into his skin, sealing his injuries instantly. His posture straightened, and he flexed his fingers, adjusting to the renewed strength in his body.

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  I smirked. “No excuses now.”

  Varis looked down at the sword in his hands, gripping it tightly. His breathing was steady, his hesitation fading.

  I turned toward the nest. "Then let’s see if you have what it takes."

  And with that, I kicked the entrance open.

  "Go wild."

  Varis hesitated for only a moment before lunging forward, his new sword cutting through flesh like butter. The goblins barely had time to react. Their screams filled the air as he tore through them, his movements wild yet growing more precise with each kill.

  I leaned against a nearby tree, arms crossed, watching the massacre unfold. Blood splattered against the cave walls, pooling beneath Varis' feet as he moved.

  As I observed, a thought surfaced—shouldn't something be happening by now?

  In stories, this would be the moment where something bigger happens. Maybe a hidden boss appears, or some divine intervention stops us. But nothing.

  The world was still. Calm.

  Which meant either this world wasn't as predictable as I thought... or I wasn't seeing the whole picture.

  I sighed, rolling my shoulders. I should start digging deeper.

  There was still too much I didn’t know about this world, and that needed to change.

  Varis stumbled out of the cave, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he tried to catch his breath. His once dull, rusted sword was now slick with fresh blood, dripping onto the ground with every shaky step he took. His entire body was covered in red—his hands, his face, even his tattered clothes were soaked in the blood of his own kind.

  With a grunt, he threw a sack onto the ground. The weight of it made a sickening thud.

  "I'm finished," he muttered, wiping the back of his hand across his forehead, only smearing more blood in the process.

  I looked at him for a moment before speaking. "How does it feel?"

  He didn't answer right away. His gaze was distant, as if he were still processing what he'd done.

  I took a step closer. "I don’t have any special powers to make you stronger, no divine blessings, no shortcuts," I told him. "Which means it’s on you. If you want power, you take it. You earn it."

  Varis clenched his fists, staring down at the blood on his hands.

  "Then I’ll just have to get stronger," he said, his voice firmer this time.

  I smirked. "Good. Then let's keep going."

  Throughout the entire day, Varis tore through goblin nests like a beast unleashed. Three nests, wiped out. A total of 678 goblins reduced to nothing but corpses.

  By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, he stood before me, barely able to keep himself upright. His breathing was ragged, his arms shaking from exhaustion. Blood caked his clothes, his face, even his once-shiny sword now dulled by the sheer amount of use.

  I lifted up the massive sack of goblin ears, feeling its weight.

  "We're eating good tonight!" I declared with a grin.

  Varis, still catching his breath, gave me a look somewhere between disbelief and exhaustion. "You—you're way too enthusiastic about this."

  "Hey, money is money," I shrugged. "And this? This is a lot of money."

  He let out a tired chuckle, wiping sweat and blood from his face. "I think I hate goblins now."

  "Good," I smirked. "That just means you're getting used to this."

  Time to head back to the guild.

  ...

  I strode into the adventurer’s guild and, without a hint of subtlety, dropped the massive sack of goblin ears onto the counter with a thud. The sheer weight of it made Yuna flinch. A few adventurers nearby turned to stare, their conversations halting as they glanced between me and the overstuffed sack.

  "Money, please!" I said, grinning.

  Yuna sighed, rubbing her temples. "Kelvin… Do you ever not cause a scene?"

  "Not my fault goblins have two ears each," I shrugged.

  She muttered something under her breath before pulling out a ledger and flipping through the pages. With a glance at the sack, she hesitated. "You—how many did you even kill?"

  "Six hundred seventy-eight," I answered casually.

  The guild fell silent. A few adventurers who had been eavesdropping nearly choked on their drinks. One guy at the back actually dropped his fork.

  Yuna just blinked at me. Then at Varis, who was still covered in dried goblin blood, barely standing upright.

  "...Are you serious?"

  "As serious as my empty wallet," I said, tapping the counter. "Now, if you could just—"

  She sighed again, shaking her head as she motioned for one of the guild staff to fetch the payment. "This is ridiculous. Do you ever take it easy?"

  "Taking it easy doesn’t pay," I replied with a smirk. "Now hurry up, I have expensive taste."

  As Yuna started counting the goblin ears, I leaned on the counter.

  "And please, stop calling my name out loud," I muttered. "Just call me K."

  She didn’t even look up as she replied, "That mask isn’t really useful if you’ve already made yourself an attraction."

  I sighed. She wasn’t wrong. The whole guild was either watching me or whispering about me at this point. Even the ones who tried to act indifferent were clearly listening. The wyvern incident, the knight duel, and now casually dropping off nearly 700 goblin kills in a day—it all added up.

  "Yeah, yeah," I waved her off. "Just hurry up and give me my money."

  She finished counting, scribbled something in the ledger, then looked up at me. "You’re not gonna spend all of this on food again, are you?"

  I placed a hand on my chest, feigning offense. "Yuna, please. I'm a responsible adventurer. I would never waste all my earnings on food."

  Her deadpan stare told me she wasn't buying it.

  "…Fine. Most of it," I admitted.

  Yuna sighed as she handed over a pouch filled with gold coins. "At this point, I don’t even know why I bother."

  I grinned, weighing the pouch in my palm. "Because deep down, you care about my financial stability."

  "Sure, let’s go with that," she said, clearly unamused.

  I turned to leave, but just as I did, a familiar voice called out behind me.

  "Hey, Masked Freak!"

  I stopped, rolling my eyes behind the Oni mask. Turning back, I saw a group of adventurers—probably C-rank like me, maybe B-rank if they were lucky. The guy who shouted was a muscular swordsman with a chipped blade and a grin that screamed ‘I think I’m hot shit.’ His buddies stood behind him, arms crossed like some kind of backup dancers for his ego.

  "Word’s been spreading about you," the swordsman continued. "Soloing wyverns, killing hundreds of goblins, taking down a knight in a duel. Either you're the real deal, or you’re just full of it."

  I tilted my head. "And what? You wanna fight to find out?"

  His grin widened. "Nah. Just saying, if you’re so strong, why waste time hunting goblins? There’s better prey out there."

  That actually made me pause. He wasn’t wrong. Goblins weren’t exactly a challenge anymore.

  Before I could answer, Yuna sighed dramatically. "Oh great, another idiot looking for a fight. Look, if you guys are gonna start something, take it outside."

  The swordsman smirked. "No fight. Just advice. If you wanna get stronger, maybe start hunting something worth your time."

  I watched as he and his group walked off, leaving me with that thought.

  Something worth my time, huh?

  I glanced at Varis, who stood silently beside me, gripping the hilt of his sword. He had grown stronger, but he was still just at the start of his journey.

  Maybe it was time to find something really strong to fight.

  ...

  Back at the inn, I stretch my arms and lean back in my chair, watching Varis sit across from me. He still has dried goblin blood on him, but he looks less exhausted than before. If anything, he seems... different.

  "Good job today, Varis," I say, tossing a small piece of bread his way. He catches it, sniffing it cautiously before taking a bite. "But I gotta ask—how the hell are you able to speak?"

  He pauses mid-chew, looking at me like I just asked him to explain the meaning of life. After a few seconds, he simply shrugs.

  "I don't know."

  Eh?

  I blink. "What do you mean you don't know? Goblins don’t just start talking out of nowhere."

  Varis frowns, setting the bread down. "It just... happened. The more I fought, the more my head felt clearer. Words started making sense. At first, it was only a few, but now I can understand almost everything you say."

  I rest my chin on my hand, processing what he just told me.

  "So, what? Murder equals intelligence now?"

  Varis grimaces. "That sounds wrong."

  "Yeah, well, it sounds true," I counter. "When I first met you, you could barely string together a sentence. Now, you're having a full conversation like some noble's kid. Something changed."

  Varis looks down at his hands, flexing his fingers as if searching for an answer. "...Maybe I really did change."

  I sigh, rubbing the bridge of my nose. "Great. I might’ve created a freakin’ mutant goblin genius. What’s next? You gonna start reading books?"

  Varis tilts his head. "What's a book?"

  I groan. "Never mind."

  Well, whatever was happening to him, I’d figure it out eventually. For now, I had bigger things to worry about.

  "Get some rest," I tell him, standing up. "Tomorrow, we’re hunting something stronger."

  ...

  "Look, kid, you bought that Oni mask from me, and now you want me to tell you where to find demons?!" the old man scoffs, leaning back in his creaky wooden chair. His wrinkled hands drum against the counter as he eyes me with suspicion. "Are you out of your damn mind?"

  I smirk beneath my mask and casually place a hefty sack of gold coins onto the table. The weight of it makes a satisfying thud, and the old man's fingers twitch slightly.

  "Come on," I say smoothly. "It's worth your while."

  His eyes flicker between the sack and me, hesitation clear in his expression. He lets out a long sigh, rubbing his temples.

  "...You really ain’t got any common sense, huh?" He leans in, lowering his voice. "Fine. You want demons? There’s a place outside the kingdom’s borders—. No sane man goes there, not unless they got a death wish. Travelers tell stories about it—shadows moving when there ain't no light, voices whispering even when you're alone... and people disappearing without a trace."

  I tilt my head, intrigued. "Sounds promising."

  "Sounds suicidal," he corrects sharply. "Listen, kid. Demons ain't like goblins or wyverns. They ain't just strong—they're cunning, patient, and cruel. If they see you as weak, they'll break you before they kill you. If they see you as a threat, they won’t stop until you’re nothing but dust."

  I nod, unfazed. "Good. I was getting bored fighting weak things anyway."

  The old man clicks his tongue in frustration but doesn’t argue. Instead, he swipes the sack of gold and tucks it away under the counter.

  "If you really plan on going, don’t say I didn’t warn you." He shakes his head. "You’ve got the look of someone who’ll either become a legend... or a cautionary tale."

  I chuckle, adjusting my mask. "Guess we'll find out soon enough."

  With that, I turn and walk off, already picturing the kind of monsters I might find. Looks like my next destination is set.

  ...

  I look at Varis, arms crossed. "You know why we keep getting rejected by the caravans?"

  He furrows his brows. "No?"

  Before I can answer, I feel a small tug on my cloak.

  "Mr! Mr! I heard you're in need of a ride!"

  I glance down to see a scrappy-looking kid, no older than ten, grinning up at me. His clothes are worn, but his eyes shine with an energy that’s almost unsettling.

  "Huh? I mean… yes? To the Korthyn Mire," I reply, still trying to process why a child is offering me transportation.

  "Yes, yes! I will take you guys there!" He bounces on his heels as if traveling to a demon-infested land is the most exciting thing in the world.

  I narrow my eyes. "Aren't you scared? You know, the Korthyn Mire? Full of demons? The place no sane merchant wants to go?"

  The kid beams, completely unfazed. "Nope! Grandpa always said, ‘A real trader goes where others won't!’ And I’ve been close before!"

  Varis crosses his arms, eyeing the kid skeptically. "Close? But not in?"

  "Well… yeah," the boy admits, scratching the back of his head. "But I know the best paths! The safest—well, the less dangerous ones!"

  I sigh, rubbing my temple. This has "bad idea" written all over it, but at this point, we don’t have many choices.

  "Alright, kid. What’s your name?"

  "Finn!"

  "Alright, Finn. You’re telling me you can take us straight to the Korthyn Mire? Without getting us killed?"

  Finn nods enthusiastically. "Yep! My wagon’s fast, my horses are strong, and I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve!"

  Finn just grins wider. "So we got a deal, mister?"

  I shake my head but extend a hand. "Fine. But if anything happens, you stay behind us. No heroics."

  Finn grabs my hand and shakes it with surprising strength. "Deal!"

  This is either going to be a stroke of genius… or an absolute disaster.