Chapter 26: Gray Mist Goblins

"I see them." Asheena's red pupils glowed with magical light in the gray mist. The enemies were resting in a clearing, toying with the corpse of the female slave.

"I envy your ability to see through the mist. I'm practically blind right now." Although the lord could also resist the death fog's toxins after signing the contract, they still couldn't see through the mist, leaving Field's vision a blur. "What kind of creatures attacked the territory?"

"They're a bunch of... dwarfs, maybe? But not as fat."

"Can we take them on? If not, we should attack with the guards."

"No problem! They're just ordinary creatures." Asheena felt the warmth of Field's chest against her back, unconsciously making a comfortable "purring" sound, though her tone remained nonchalant. "We'll crush them. They haven't detected us yet."

Field carefully drew his longsword, trying not to make any noise, then whispered, "Let's take them down!"

"Ooo~"

The wolf's howl, filled with murderous intent, shattered the stillness of the gray mist. In response, a series of panicked screams erupted. Field's mini-map suddenly lit up with a cluster of red exclamation marks.

"As expected, non-corrupted creatures only trigger alerts when they become hostile towards me."

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A barrage of spears pierced through the mist, aimed at the two of them. The giant wolf swiftly dodged, becoming a blur that easily avoided the attack.

"The enemy can see us. Hiding in the mist is pointless."

Field lit a fog-repelling lamp, instantly clearing his view. The surroundings were filled with wriggling tentacles and vines, and the ground was littered with decaying corpses. Most striking, however, were the "dwarfs"—goblins, to be precise, with large noses and sharp teeth. Unlike usual goblins, these had milky white eyes and yellowish skin.

The female slave, now dead from the death fog, had been stripped and tortured. Her left abdomen was covered in a cluster of tumors due to corruption. Field, a trypophobia sufferer, nearly fainted at the sight.

Seeing humans, the gray goblins danced and taunted.

"They're immune to the fog. That's not good news." Field immediately understood that these gray goblins had survived the death fog's selection. "Leave one alive for questioning; kill the rest."

Asheena didn't hide her killing intent. "Got it."

"Thwack~"

The giant wolf suddenly appeared above the frontmost goblin. Angered by the sight of the tortured slave, Asheena's face twisted in rage, and her spear struck with increased speed. The unlucky goblin's chest was pierced, blood spurting as it was flung away by the wolf's impact, landing far off with its bones shattered.

The goblins, over thirty in number, surged forward in their ill-fitting armor, like a yellowish tide. Rusty spears thrust from all directions, and some goblins even lunged at them, trying to pull them off the mount.

"Die!"

Scenes of battle and defeat were often merely fodder for imperial novelists to entertain the masses. In the face of The Chosen's terrifying combat power, ordinary goblins stood no chance. Without even needing to breathe fire, the giant wolf barreled through the goblin tide, while Asheena's lance struck repeatedly, taking multiple lives with each blow.

Blood spread and soaked into the northern soil, pooling into small blood ponds. The continuous cries and screams, combined with the province's unique Cthulhu-like terrain, created a hellish scene.

"Aaaaah!"

Suffering heavy casualties, the goblins began to flee, exposing their unprotected backs to the highly mobile wolf cavalry—an extremely foolish move.

Asheena didn't immediately slaughter them all. In fact, she could have wiped them out instantly with a fire blast from her dragon wolf. She drew her long knife and leisurely chased the fleeing goblins.

Field could seize the opportunity to cut down the goblins with his longsword, turning them into minced meat.

Soon, only one goblin was left alive, and Asheena tracked it from afar.

Terrified creatures often couldn't think straight, tending to return to the safest place they knew.

After passing through a forest, Field recognized from the mini-map that there had once been a stone road here. Ten years ago, many travelers and merchants had used this route for its safety and efficiency. Now, after years of corruption, no trace of it remained, save for a series of skeletons by the roadside, confirming to Field that he was on the right track.

In a corrupted thorn-filled campsite, the squirming, worm-like thorns served as the best shelter the goblins could find. This goblin group, called the "Black Forest Tribe," had a leader who fancied the name. They were the noble descendants of the beastmen expeditionary force that had once launched a grand campaign to invade the human stronghold, the Holy Griffin Empire. If only they hadn't failed, as the humans seemingly communicated with the devil, causing the death fog that killed all life in the northern lands. Otherwise, the goblin leader would be comfortably playing with human princesses in a warm city. Fortunately, the resilient goblins adapted and evolved into gray mist goblins. There was still hope for breaching human walls and capturing humans for reproduction, the goblin leader fantasized.

Rapid footsteps interrupted his thoughts as a yellowish goblin stumbled in.

"Boss! We found the human camp!" The goblin spoke in their own language.

The goblin leader was delighted. "Beast God bless, where are they? I want to…"

Before he could finish, the goblin leader's smile froze as a giant wolf, over two meters tall, stood proudly in his sight.

"Damn it! You led the enemy here!"

The camp held over a hundred goblins, far weaker than the previous thirty. Field quickly assessed the situation and decided.

"What do they eat, corrupted plants?" Field wondered but knew this wasn't the time for research. With a wave of his hand, he ordered, "Burn them all to ashes! How dare they attack my people? They're tired of living."

These weren't ordinary goblins anymore; it was time to strike hard.