Exterminate Hero??

Up to this point, what humans brought to Govan was not triumph, but dread.

These humans were ordinary, yet somehow they wielded a speed and strength that began to tire even him. And now they had shown a terrifying self-healing ability… If he continued at this pace, he would be unable to win.

'I must end this swiftly.'

First, he would kill the human with the rod, then he'd deal with the one pulling random objects as shields!

"Roar ——!!"

A guttural roar erupted from Govan's throat, freezing Dus in his tracks.

Dus wondered what kind of skill this was, but there was no time to ponder. In the blink of an eye, Govan was upon him.

'Not good!'

Dus sprang back, putting dozens of meters between them in an instant.

Govan growled, lunging forward again: "Stop running!!" he snarled in the goblin tongue.

Though Dus couldn't understand his words, the anger was clear enough. Chuckling, Dus taunted, "Can you only scream like a wild ape?! Fool!"

"Roar ah ah ——!!"

Govan's rage grew, his veins pulsing as he chased. But Dus continued to widen the distance, retreating repeatedly.

He wasn't afraid to face Govan directly, knowing that with Encourage's boost, his endurance was higher than the goblin's, and Layton was still supporting him. Govan's relentless attacks against Layton had already sapped a lot of its energy, and each missed blow wore it down further.

After a while, Dus found himself breathing easier as the chase continued.

Meanwhile, in the shadows, Miruku advanced with Ariana on her back, her light venom armor shimmering.

"Finished." Miruku's hoarse voice echoed within her helmet.

"Finished?" Ariana, clinging behind her, repeated in confusion.

"The Goblin Centurion can't keep up with Mr. Oaks' speed and is wasting energy. By maintaining distance, Mr. Oaks will wear it down first. Once it slows, you can attack freely." Miruku explained.

From the start, the plan relied on Anyi and Ariana to defeat the Goblin Centurion. Even with Dus's 18 Strength points, he couldn't break through the goblin's defenses if it guarded, and Layton's own skills weren't suited for an attack, nor was his Prana high enough to last in a fight against the Centurion's agility.

Only Ariana and Anyi, after using Multiple Release, had the force needed to pierce through its durability. But without Anyi's current location, and with Ariana's agility too low to keep up, they could only wait for Govan to exhaust himself.

"Speaking of which, where is Mr. Anyi?" Miruku muttered.

"I want to know too…" Ariana responded, concerned.

[Holy Hero: Anyi, where are you? If you're injured, I can heal you.]

Ariana tried to reach Anyi again.

The silence continued, however, and Ariana's heart sank. But with a determined glance, she said, "We'll defeat the Goblin Centurion first—then we'll find him."

She couldn't leave the area now; if she did, Encourage's effect would vanish, endangering both Dus and Layton.

"Ha ha ——!! I'm back again!!" 

Layton's voice rang out as he burst from the jungle, wielding a hunk of metal and rushing toward Govan.

Govan turned and, without hesitation, grabbed Layton by the leg, flinging him skyward once again.

Miruku: "..."

Poor Mr. Layton, she thought, watching as the goblin dismissed him completely.

Then Miruku's eyes widened. Time seemed to slow, her surroundings blurred, and all she could focus on was a distant figure, several hundred meters away—a Goblin Shaman had emerged from the jungle.

There it stood, clutching a staff, its face twisted in surprise and uncertainty. Panic flashed over the Goblin Shaman's expression as it pointed its staff toward the place where Govan chased Dus.

In an instant, Miruku's hesitation disappeared. She blinked, then surged forward, roaring, "Careful!"

Dus turned just as Govan's body erupted with red light, his muscles expanding with brutal force.

[Goblin Centurion: 

Strength: 30+10 Agility: 10+10 Endurance: 10+10 

Durability: 10+10 Prana: 2+10 Intelligence: 3+10 

Technique: 8+10]

"Ha ha ——!! Meet your death!!" Govan bellowed, moving with blinding speed.

Dus, who had been drawing out the battle to drain Govan's stamina, halted in alarm as he realized his plan was shattered. He barely turned before a massive, crimson blade struck.

"Poof!"

Blood sprayed from his back, leaving a gruesome trail. Though his reflexes saved him from a mortal blow, he couldn't escape unscathed.

Ariana and Miruku watched in horror.

[Thorn Hero: Mr. Layton! Mr. Layton, return!]

Moments earlier, Miruku had wrestled with doubt—wondering if the Goblin Shaman's [Encourage] would stack with the Centurion's. Now, she had her answer. The Shaman had cast it precisely because it could.

Dus, bleeding profusely, retreated nearly a hundred meters before finally halting. Sweat poured from his face, a bitter smile breaking across his lips. He knew—recovery or not, the Goblin Centurion would not relent this time.

"Ha ha ha ha ——!! Well done! Well done!!" Govan cheered in goblin tongue as the Shaman joined him, clapping with dark satisfaction. Govan's smile turned fierce as his gaze fixed on Dus.

"Boom!" With that, Govan lunged, closing in on Dus with devastating speed.

But then—

'Holy Judge! Multiple releases! Use 300 mana!'

A sphere of light shot skyward, bursting into a cascade of golden arrows that rained down around Dus.

"Boom boom boom ——!!"

A thunderous volley struck the ground. Govan halted, wary. What kind of attack was this? He paused, watching the dust rise, confused—it wasn't targeting him, but the human.

When the dust cleared, Dus was gone, carried swiftly to the jungle's edge. But neither Dus nor Miruku noticed that Govan's gaze followed them. He had caught the scent of human blood.

Ready to strike again—

"Over here, monster! Your opponent is me!"

The dust cleared, revealing Layton once more. Somehow, his appearance only infuriated Govan more.

This time, the Centurion would deal with him first.

"Die!!" Govan screeched, advancing on Layton with deadly intent.

"What are you shouting about? I don't understand!!" Layton retorted, hoisting his iron door-shield and charging forward to meet him.

...

"If it's just a Goblin Centurion, the four of them should have no problem."

As Anyi was flung deeper into the jungle, further from Govan and the others, he evaluated his position. When Govan attacked, he hadn't yet been boosted by [Encourage], meaning his Durability was only at 10 points. A direct hit would have split him in two. But experience gave him foresight. Having defeated numerous Goblin Centurions before, he swiftly wielded the [Slime Sword] to weaken Govan's blow, then braced with the [Hero's Sword] to absorb the impact.

The others had seen him sent flying, yet he bore not a scratch, not even a trace of blood.

His intention had been to eliminate Govan quickly, as planned, but the creature sensed his threat. Truthfully, Anyi could have ended it then. Yet an effortless solution would rob the others of crucial battle experience. For Heroes, such encounters are as vital as leveling up—experience that prepares them to survive when stats alone won't suffice. So, retreat was his best choice.

But this didn't mean he'd remain idle.

This "blown away" moment was different from the last time, when he'd been caught by the Slime King. That creature was weak, and with the loot from it complete, there was no need to fight it again. The previous incident with the Slime King had been an accident, one he hadn't faced in his past life, likely because he'd traveled alone before.

That time was unplanned; this time, he'd orchestrated his "retreat" to aid the others.

As this Tale only held three Goblin Centurions—one currently engaged—the remaining two had left to face Heroes in other regions. Those Heroes, mostly around level 7, were meant to reach level 10 by taking down Goblin Shamans and then initiate the third phase of the plan.

But a plan is a plan, and reality, as always, has its own ways.

At best, they'd manage to kill one or two Goblin Shamans before the Goblin Centurion caught on. Its sharp intelligence combined with the Goblin's natural "escape mechanism" meant that once the number of Shamans dropped too low, the Centurion would intervene.

Anyi's task was clear: before Ariana's group could handle the Goblin Centurions on their end, he'd need to take out the other two Centurions. If they grouped up and received [Encourage] from the Shamans, it'd force Miruku to use her rare skill.

On his way, Anyi bent down to pluck some grass, allowing the slime sword to stretch from his feet up over his head, covering his face and hair entirely. He secured the grass to the back of his head, creating the illusion of long hair. Then, he fastened a torn Goblin Shaman's cloak across his shoulders, letting the slime fluid turn his skin to a natural hue and staining the grass a dark red, like crimson locks flowing down his back.

Finally, he broadened the slime sword at his waist, giving it curves that resembled a woman's form. 'This should do the trick,' he thought, though the disguise felt absurdly flimsy.

He then tore a strip of cloth, covering his mouth and nose to hide the lack of true human features. His entire form was now obscured, save for his eyes.

...

"Ho ho!! This human still stands?! (Goblin language)," Gothry sneered, pointing at the human lying a few meters away.

"I think he'll make a fine toy," Gottu grinned, watching with delight.

Heroes on the left and center flanks had retreated, yet the Steel Hero remained, blood-soaked and wounded. Though the Goblin Centurions' strength hadn't broken his resolve, he had little HP left, his body covered in cuts and bruises. 

"Everyone else… has escaped," Steel Hero gasped. "Mission accomplished!" He laughed, the sound both triumphant and resigned. Yet, a glint of sorrow lingered in his eyes. 

But now, standing alone against two towering, 3.5-meter Goblins, he saw his end nearing.

"Great!" laughed Gottu. "I'll bring him back with us. Let's see how long he lasts!"

Then a faint rustling interrupted them. A figure moved through the trees. 

No smell… strange.

"Eh?" Both Goblin Centurions turned to see who approached.

A woman with pale, exposed skin and ragged clothes stepped out of the shadows, her face obscured by the tattered cloth. But there was one unmistakable feature:

Long, flowing red hair.