Chapter 10: The Deviant Goblin

Nicholas Dread’s POV (Goblin Nick)

Beads of sweat had been flowing down my green skin as my large bulging eyes stared at the structure in front of me. It was a five-story building, a structure that was a popular destination before the apocalypse took place. Inside were cinemas, clinics, a large supermarket, boutiques, and many others. A place that was very familiar. A place filled with nightmarish memories.

Currently, I was looking at the Mall where I first witnessed the apocalypse.

Out of the innumerable structures in this place, this one remained intact, spared from the fire that engulfed more than half the city. This fact gave relief to me. After all, this was the last place I’ve seen my family.

After becoming a goblin, I had confirmed one thing. The monsters that roamed the streets were not hostile to me. The Minotaurs, the Goblins, Golems, and even the rare snake-monster I’ve met on the way. None of them attacked me.

Having this ugly face and body actually have its advantages, huh? At the very least, I did not have to worry about being suddenly assaulted by monsters.

I scrutinized my current body. Green, rough skin. Long nails. Bulbous nose. Large gawking eyes. The same monster that lurker everywhere. But what differentiated me from the other goblins was definitely my clothes. Currently, I was wearing a tattered leather jacket I looted from the corpse of a kid. On my feet was a pair of worn out sneakers, a small one at that, definitely meant to be used by a toddler. On my back was a bag, filled with some dangerous things I’ve found while on my way to this place. The things inside this bag would be my trump card. My weapon-of-escape in dire situations.

At first, I was hesitant of taking the clothes of a dead person, but I later on came to the conclusion that now was not the time to be soft. Now was not the time for useless morals which could hinder my goals.

The clothes I was wearing were dirty, definitely uncomfortable, but they gave me a sense of relief at the very least. Having something covering and protecting me gave me some degree of peace of mind. Especially the sneakers. It was now a lot easier to run around. Thankfully, the nails on my feet were not that long. Otherwise, I would have no choice but to run around with my feet naked.

It had been a couple of hours since I’ve arrived to the Human Realm. I stretched my body.

I entered the Mall.

Just like before, this place was filled with corpses. Decapitated bodies were scattered about, lifeless, rotting. If I was still human, I would have probably vomited from the stench of decay in the air. But for some reason, this scent was actually aromatic, almost enticing. Without knowing it, I have started sniffing the scent of death that continued to waft in the air.

I gnashed my teeth. This was not good. I shouldn’t lose my humanity.

Nick. You are human. You are not a monster.

I repeated those words inside my head, like some sort of mantra. I noticed the drools that started coming out of my mouth. I wiped it using the back of my hand. This would always happen whenever I was near human corpses. This have to stop.

This place was a bit dark, even though it was morning outside. Through the shattered windows, small amounts of light seeped through.

My eyes scanned my surroundings. As I walked through the mall, I would look at each corpse I encountered along the way. I was really hoping that my family was safe, that they have survived. But I had to look at the dead bodies just to be sure.

I also went towards the second floor. This place was infested by goblins.

I saw the hardware store nearby. Just perfect. The pickaxe from before was just too inconvenient to bring along. After realizing that it was fairly safe to travel the streets with my current body, I decided to leave it behind. Searching for my family would be faster without having to carry that large thing around.

“I can probably find a good weapon in there,” I said.

What I wanted was a weapon that would fit this body of mine. Preferably something that was not too big and heavy, not too small either, and durable enough to block numerous blows. Something sharp enough to cut through flesh and bones.

I searched through the Hardware. Indeed, there were weapons here. Kitchen knives. Machetes. There was even a long sword. What was it doing in this place? I wondered.

After scrutinizing the weapons available, I’ve decided to take Chef’s Knives with me. Two of them. They seemed more durable than most, and more importantly, they were the right size for this body. The other weapons were simply too large or too long. Others were too heavy.

After picking out my weapons, I began searching the other floors. The third floor was almost empty, with nothing but a few dozen corpses. The fourth floor was just like the other floors, but with lesser goblins. It was impossible to enter the fifth floor. The stairs have crumbled down, probably due to the earthquake, or maybe some monster, I was not sure.

I heaved a sigh of relief. At the very least, they were not here. They were not among the corpses scattered about. My family must have escaped to a safer place.

I was about to leave the mall when a loud shrieking sound was heard. I was pretty sure it came from a goblin. I was on the second floor, and looking down below, I saw three humans near the entrance of the Mall.

A muscular, middle-aged man. A fat guy. And a girl with golden hair.

“Are they stupid?” I breathed. It was evident that monsters would be lurking in this place. Why did they come here?

From the outside, I heard loud thuds. Fuck. The Minotaurs were coming. They need to run.

And just like I have predicted, the damnable cow-like monsters came, effectively blocking the path of retreat of the three.

If I were them, I would still try to escape through the Mall’s entrance. Entering this place would be suicide. There were too many monsters around.

“Run outside!” I shouted, but my voice was drowned by the goblins shrieking and the Minotaurs roaring. I was not even sure if they would be able to understand me. I have never heard the goblins speak when I was still human, after all.

Quickly, it became a game of chase. The trio ran way for their lives. I was vexed that they chose to run deeper inside the mall. There were literally hundreds of monsters in this place! It would be safer to run outside!

Still, I could not blame them. When a monster like the Minotaur was blocking the entrance, the first thing a human would think of was to get as far away from that place as possible. It was probably their survival instinct kicking it.

The three of them started climbing up the second floor. This was actually a horrible choice. It would be far safer if you guys just turned around and made a desperate attempt for the Mall’s exit. Of course, they have no way of knowing that. They have no way of knowing the amount of monsters lurking on each floor.

The middle-aged man was good. He was actually able to fight against so many goblins at once. The fat guy, on the other hand, seemed unreliable. He merely stood there, fighting off the occasional goblins that would come his way.

The Minotaurs finally caught up to them. They had also climbed the flight of stairs.

My heart loudly pounded as I watched the scenario unfolding before my eyes. At this rate, they were all going to die. There was no path for escape.

The fat guy started pointing at a room quite a good distance from them. After fending off their attackers, they all started running towards it. I have never seen a human run so fast in my entire life. They would probably win the Olympics had they joined it.

I also ran too. I followed the trio. Next to me were numerous other monsters, chasing after them, lusting for their flesh.

Eventually, the speed of humans desperately trying to survive emerged victorious in the end. They entered a narrow alley, then went inside a room. The Minotaurs were unable to chase further. They were too large for the entrance.

At first, that was what I thought.

Hey, why weren’t the Goblins chasing after the group? I could understand the Minotaurs, but the Goblins too?

My curiosity got the best of me. I walked towards the alley, and before I could even reach the door, a notification popped out in front of me.

You are about to enter the Nest of the Babyface Arachnid.

Any creature that enters will warrant its wrath.

Do still wish to proceed?

I froze. So, behind this room was the nest of some monster?

Those three were probably dead by now, devoured by the one ruling this territory.

I realized that this was probably the reason why the Minotaurs and the Goblins did not chase them any further. They were afraid to enter. Afraid of the creature residing in that place.

Should I help them? I shook my head. That would be suicide. My family should take priority. I cannot simply die here.

Still, I was human. I was no monster. If possible, I would like to help them. But what could I do? Even the strong Minotaurs were afraid of that place. Even the hundreds of Goblins refused to enter its territory. I cannot just simply go in there and fight that monster.

From my spot, I could hear the screams of the guys that entered inside. They were probably fighting against the monster right now. They ran away from the wolf, only to find themselves in the den of the tiger.

Eventually, the screams died out. Were they dead? I did not know.

I hanged my head as I realized my powerlessness. I could not even save my fellow humans. I stood outside the room motionlessly, unaware of the time that had passed by.

Slowly, I tottered back. I have decided to leave this place. Even if I couldn’t save them, I should at least try to find my family. I still have time. I could do it, I told myself.

On my right, a Goblin shrieked. Upon looking, my jaw dropped from what I saw.

A monster was dragging the Goblin away, towards the ceiling above. To be precise, it was climbing towards the fifth floor.

A monster that reminded me of a giant spider. Instead of an insect head, three heads of an infant were there, clearly attached to the neck. Tentacles were protruding out of the mouths, creating disgusting sloshing sounds. It was a monster among monsters. And to make matters worse, it did not discriminate against Goblins. It did not care who its prey was.

It would shoot out threads from its belly, then forcefully drag away the bodies of its targets. Right now, it had successfully captured four goblins, their shrieking sounds long gone after their bodies were wrapped around in threads.

Babyface Arachnid

Lv 31

I remembered the notification I received when I approached the room before. It was definitely the same name of the monster written in that blue screen.

But what was it doing here outside? Was it not content with the humans it got inside its nest? After observing it for a while, it seemed that it was depositing the bodies of the goblins into the fifth floor.

Maybe, the reason why the stairs to the fifth floor was broken was because of this monster? Maybe that thing had made that entire floor its nest?

As I was thinking of those things, I looked at the room at the end of the second floor. It was the same room where the trio entered before. The entrance to the Nest of that monster.

If that monster was on the fifth floor, then going inside that place should be fairly safe.

Wait, what if it had its minions? What if its children were waiting inside?

Should I go in and see if the three humans were still alive? I might still be able to save them.

My mind went into full throttle as I tried reaching a conclusion. And I eventually arrived at one.

“God damn it,” I snarled. I readied my knife then went towards that place.

The same notification as before popped up.

You are about to enter the Nest of the Babyface Arachnid.

Any creature that enters will warrant its wrath.

Do still wish to proceed?

I gulped down the lump in my throat. My instinct was screaming at me, “What are you doing?!” but I dismissed it in my mind.

I opened the door then entered.

You have entered the Nest of the Babyface Arachnid!

Numerous eggs were scattered around this room, with thick webs veiling their shells. The walls were decrepit, with threads hanging here and there. I could hear faint pulsating sounds and realized those were coming from the eggs themselves.

Babyface Arachnid Egg

Lv 4

What the hell. Those eggs the size of an ostrich’s have a higher level than me.

I shook my head. Now’s not the time for this. I need to find those trio soon, before the monster decides to come back here. I noticed that near the ceiling was a large hole. It was probably the path the monster takes whenever it went outside.

I looked around and saw figures of what seemed to be humans. They were wrapped in threads, their bodies shackled and latched on the walls. For a moment, I wondered if they were alive. It seemed hard to breathe while being covered by that thing.

After staring at them, I realized that they were still breathing.

I decided to help the girl first. Using my knife, I began cutting the threads. This was hard. It was like cutting through steel wires.

“Come on,” I said through heavy breaths. This was mentally taxing and physically tiring.

After a few more attempts, I was finally able to cut the threads. With my small body, I slowly let her fall down the ground.

I looked at her hand. It was firmly holding a notebook and a pen. Even in such a dire situation, she refused to let go of them.

These guys were still alive. They might attack me the moment they wake up. Just to be safe, I decided to take the notebook and the pen. I needed some way of communication, after all. They would most likely not understand the language of us goblins.

I went towards the fat guy. Slowly, I began cutting his rope.

I heard a groaning sound. He was starting to wake up. The guy looked at me for a moment, stupefied of what he saw.

A goblin wearing clothes, cutting the threads that bound his body. Of course, anyone would be confused of what was going on.

I took the notebook out, wrote down some notes, then showed it to him.

I’m here to help you. I’m not your enemy. The Babyface is currently out searching for more food. Don’t make a sound or it might come back.