He scuttled behind the rubble like a mouse in an open field. He could hear the distant sounds of battle from afar, the shouts and cries of many filled his ears and told him what areas to avoid. Foul. That was the only way he could describe the unmistakable signs of violence that lay splattered on the ground. Semirra's shoe let out a wet squish as she stepped on what remained of a poor horse. Possibly a person based on the shattered helmet. A tingle ran down their backs as they trodded through the gore covered alley.

"Violent... Like in the stories."

"Stories?"

The Goblin nodded as he opened the backdoor of some building.

"Goblin stories. Stories of old wars told to scare little Goblins. All about wars and how Demons eat violence, I think."

"Demons eat violence? I thought Demons eat everything that is alive or moving."

Semirra said as she closed the door behind her.

The two of them entered a place unfamiliar to the two of them. There were tables everywhere. One of the tables was large and built into the house itself and in front of it were tall chairs. There were countless bottles and kegs behind the strange table and the Goblin picked up the unmistakable scent of various liquors from them. Miu slithered out from the Goblin's shoe as he scanned the seemingly empty room. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end as his ears twitched at every slight sound.

A floorboard creaked. His hands moved towards his blade when his crimson eyes spotted four pairs of eyes that peeked at them from behind a door. None dared to move as their eyes remained glued onto one another out of shock and confusion. The heavy, tension that hung over them was broken when a young woman crept out of the room, her face a clear expression of relief and joy. She wore thin clothes that the Goblin could only describe as "loose" and meant clearly for sleeping. Behind her stood a young boy and three girls that wore clothing similar to hers.

"A-Are you an adventurer?"

The Goblin blinked at the woman's frantic question. Suddenly, his hands were being held tightly by the woman as she knelt in front of him.

"M-My children! Please save them!"

He let out a squeak as the woman's hands tightened down on his own in a vice that felt as if the bones in his hands will break.

Ouch! The Goblin tried to pull away from the brown-haired woman but it was no use. After a fruitless yet subtle struggle, he looked at the three children that huddled together in the doorframe. Tears flowed down the woman's cheeks as she begged for him to save them. It was a strange thing for him to wrap his head around. He is a stranger. A complete stranger she does not know and one that just entered this strange place in the middle of the night and in the midst of an attack. Yet there was something that clawed at him within his chest. Something that made him look into the woman's hazel eyes and nod.

"Okay."

He said no other words as he pulled away from the woman. Instead, he let out a quiet groan as he looked through one of the windows of the tavern.

Smoke. Only certain parts of the city were touched by the flames. But there were parts of it that were quiet, abandoned by the citizens to whatever fate that awaited them. But one district, in particular, was filled with loud noises. Noises that came not from destruction, but activity. His ears were muffled by the hood of his cloak, but he knew that those sounds were the unmistakable signs that people are gathering in large numbers. He shuddered. Large people gathering weren't good, for Goblins that is. But right now, he isn't a Goblin.

The tip of his finger lit up with bright light. The magic wasn't meant to light their way through the streets, but to gauge how safe it is to venture out from the building. He turned towards the woman and her children. She was hesitant. He could tell by the way she glanced at him and Semirra. He let out a sigh as the woman said some things to her children while the Goblin waited for them impatiently. Once they were done, he nodded to the woman as he went out of the front door with Semirra behind him.

He stood close to the building, his amber eyes shone in the light of the fires that ate at the city. He moved swiftly, silently, and cautiously. The magical light in his fingers did not falter, and behind him was Semirra and the small family that suddenly followed him. He wondered why people trust adventurers so much, then his face slammed onto a wooden door. Or more accurately, the wooden door slammed onto his face.

"Finally! Adventurers! I told you they'll come!"

He wanted to punch the source of the excited voice as he rubbed his nose.

The thought faded quickly as he looked up and saw a mountain of fat and muscle. In front of him was a man armed with a large cleaver clearly meant to chop through meat and a beard that could rival that of any Dwarf-Man. Behind the large man were people, lots of people. There were at least a handful of families hidden inside with their weapons raised at him.

"W-Wait, you're adventurers... Right? Can you take us with you?"

The people in front of him stared in disbelief. Even the adventurers that rushed out to meet them were in a state of shock. His heart raced as the adventurer in front of him looked at him then back to the large crowd that followed him. He didn't know how it happened. It went from him being followed by a family of four to him leading what felt like a few hundred people through the eerily quiet streets of Arenhein. For any other adventurer, they would've basked in the attention of their feat. But for a Goblin, attention from anything was something met only by suspicion or fear.

He wanted to slip away and hide but two figures caught his eye. They were small, but they pushed and shoved against the people that received and welcomed those who sought the refuge of the guild. Without hesitation, he ignored the cries for him to halt and identify himself and ran towards the two children that met him with surprised eyes and biscuits.

"Gob-"

"Friend! Y-You're here!"

Orien's hand covered his sister's mouth as he leaned forwards.

"What are you doing here?!"

"Err... Her."

The Goblin pointed at Semirra, who hid behind him to shield herself from the curious gaze of the crowd. Ameera yanked her brother's arm away from her mouth and adjusted her eyepatch to look at the Goblin better.

"Even with just an eye, it's not hard to spot you with those yellow eyes of yours. And what are you doing making a scene?!"

"Well, I think he's a bold adventurer with that entrance of his. What is your name, friend?"

The Goblin's ears drooped as the two children in front of him whirled around at the sound of his voice.

"G-Guildmaster Liam! Did the commotion bring you here as well?"

"He's amazing, isn't he? Hehehe..."

The Guildmaster raised an eyebrow at the siblings and he cast a long glance at him and the Beastman that hid behind him.

"Ameera talking to me in a nice tone means something is amiss... Where is your Adventurer Tag?"

The Goblin glanced at the two. Subtlely, they shook their head in an effort to tell him to just shut up and play dumb.

"I don't-"

"Oh! So you lost it in a battle earlier! Of course! Of course! I'm sure you must be tired and drained from your efforts!"

He didn't even finish his sentence when the Guildmaster placed a hand on his shoulder and ushered all four of them towards the large building.

Food so strange and foreign and ones that not even the greatest of Goblin Chieftains could ever dream of eating lay in front of him tantalizingly. The scent wafted in front of him and tempted him to feast. But to do so, he must take off his disguise. He would rather starve than risk being mobbed by the scary old man that drank the dark liquid that had a soothing smell to it. It was the same drink that rests within the strange cup in front of him.

"It's tea and a wonderful one at that. Orien here brews the best tea and Ameera bakes the best sausage bread. Please, try some!"

Ameera and Orien sat beside him as they nibbled on the biscuits that lay within arms reach. Behind them was Semirra, who slept soundly on the soft and scented bed provided for them.

"It is not difficult to tell that there is something else hidden beneath that disguise of yours. And I already have an inkling of what you are when I saw those yellow eyes of yours."

The Guildmaster smiled at the Goblin as he pointed at the plate filled with biscuits and bread.

"I give you my word, none will harm you under my watch. Now eat up and take off that scarf of yours. It must be stuffy in there."

The Guildmaster took a biscuit and dipped it into his cup of tea. The Goblin gulped. It did look appetizing and he was feeling quite a bit peckish. After a moment's hesitation, he sighed and took off his scarf.

"I see... I knew it."

The Guildmaster sighed while Orien and Ameera stared at him in disbelief.

"That glimmer of crimson when you hid your face under that hood is what gave you away. And I also felt that tingle in the back of my hand when I first saw you, a tingle that made me want to draw my sword."

"... I did nothing wrong."

"Indeed you haven't, Goblin. Do not worry, I am a man of my word so please do not glare at me with those eyes of yours."

The Goblin stared in silence as the Guildmaster looked away from his uncovered face.

His hands reached towards the cup of tea in front of him. It was hot, yet its taste had that strange soothing feel to it. The Guildmaster nodded and he finally accepted his offer to taste the biscuits. He chose a biscuit that looked plain and simple and bit down it. The biscuit was dry, very dry, yet he couldn't help but feel surprised at the delicious taste of the biscuit. He washed down the dry biscuit with the delicious tea and smiled.

"Good food."

"Thank you. Anyway, should we get down to business?"

"Business?"

"Yes, I wanted to talk to you about that Beastman over there and why you are here."

The Orien and Ameera glanced at the sleeping Semirra.

"There were reports of strange men, dragging slaves around with a certain crest. One of these strange men was killed earlier, along with what remained of his slave. On the chest of that poor Low-Elf girl is a Demonic Crest, and I was wondering-"

"What it look like?"

The Goblin rose to his feet and startled both Orien and Ameera as he eyed the Guildmaster wearily.

"Such a thing will only draw unwanted attention unto us. Although, if I may ask, did the slave over there had strange runes etched onto her body?"

"Runes? Y-Yes... But it disappeared when she killed the Demon."

"W-Wait, she killed a Demon?"

"Hush, Ameera. That would explain it then. She broke the link."

"Link?"

The Guildmaster nodded at the Goblin.

"A crest meant to bind a Lesser Demon to a vessel in the absence of a rift. It is the link Demons use to possess and take over a person's body and it is undone either through various holy rituals or the slaying of the Demon that wishes to take the body."

The Guildmaster sighed as he shook his head.

"I'll launch an investigation and have her checked up later. For now, let's deal with the problem that is your identity and the missing pieces of your disgui-"

The Guildmaster stopped as blinding, white light filled the room. Ameera and Orien looked away while the two of them glanced out of the window.

A strong gust of wind shot past them as they saw the pillar of light that briefly lit up the night sky. Something beat its wings up in the air but another one of those bright lights decimated it with its sheer power. The Goblin felt the chill of magic being sucked out of the air as another round was fired into the poor target that now fell headlong towards the earth. A final shot was fired, and the spell burnt the air and the rooftops with power comparable to that of 7th Tier Magic.

"For him to use that weapon means that a powerful enemy must've appeared. Thankfully, we are all safe- Goblin?"

Only shadows remained from where the Goblin was moments ago. The Guildmaster looked out of the window and saw a small shape as it dashed from building to building. It headed not for the safety of the city's outskirts, but towards the source of the heaviest fighting.

"Orien... Tell me more about this fellow."

The Guildmaster smiled as he tapped his cheek.