Chapter 12: Like a Blown Candle

It had been a couple of hours since I parted ways with the trio. Currently, I was walking through the corpse-filled streets of the city, my eyes looking around for any lead to the whereabouts of my family. Broken cars were here and there, and slabs of stones occasionally pierced the crack-filled streets. Some posts have fallen down the ground, effectively blocking the roads. With my body, I have to climb over them to reach the other path.

This was tiring, and now that I had thought about it, I have not rested for more than a day now. I have been continuously walking, running, searching, and fatigue had started knocking on the door of my body. But the most important thing right now was I was hungry. My stomach was growling, demanding I give it food.

“Shit,” I grumbled, my eyes fixated on the corpses in front of me. They looked tasty. For some reason I could not yet understand, the Goblins sent in this Realm refused to take the bodies of male corpses. Even back in the Goblin Slaughterhouse, the Meat Fruits were made solely from the flesh of female corpses.

What was the reason for it? I really wanted to know. I wanted to understand how these monsters think.

My mind was screaming at me that I should grab the corpse and make it my food. Damn it.

I used Identify on the corpse.

Human Corpse (Male)

42 Years Old

A primary school teacher when he was alive.

Alchemy Ingredient: Rank D+

Although male humans are edible, they taste nasty, like a pile of dung mixed with grime.

I did not expect the skill to give out such detailed information. So, the reason why the Goblins refused to take male humans was because they taste nasty, huh? That was an unexpectedly good find. I stared for a moment at the last few words mentioned by the system. That was quite a vivid description there.

“A former teacher,” I whispered, my eyes gazing at the mutilated corpse in front of me. His arms were bent in impossible directions, and half his face was crushed into paste. Near him, the same state could be said with the other corpses. It was a really brutal way to die.

Near me, a group of Goblins passed by. They were really noisy, and the lifeless streets further amplified their cackling sound. I could definitely feel their enjoyment in this massacre.

After a heavy sigh, I continued walking. I have yet to see another sign of human life. As expected of my kin, they were really good at hiding and preserving their lives. That was my conclusion for these desolated streets. After all, it had almost been a week since the apocalypse started. Only almost a week. There was no way the human race had been reduced to nil. If I continued searching, I would most likely encounter them. And that moment was a lot sooner than I had expected.

After crossing an intersection, I caught glimpse of a shadow moving in a nearby building. It was only for a moment, but I was sure that it was there. Goblins usually move in groups, while a Minotaur would definitely make a loud rumbling sound as it walked. That shadow probably belonged to a human. At least, that was what I hoped.

Glancing left and right, I vigilantly surveyed my surroundings. It would be no laughing matter if a surviving human suddenly assaulted me and killed me. After all, I currently have the body of a Goblin. No questions asked, I would immediately be attacked.

Inside the building where I saw the shadow, the sound of glass hitting the ground was heard. In this silence, it was deafeningly loud.

“What are you doing?! What if those monsters outside hear us?!”

I heard a hushed voice. The owner probably blurted those words out of panic.

Luckily, there were no monsters around. I have decided: I would check that building.

I was about to approach the entrance when I saw a group of Minotaurs pass by. One of them afforded a glance at my direction, probably wondering why a goblin was alone. Eventually, it lost interest. The group disappeared from sight.

That was freaking scary. For a moment, I thought that those colossal creatures noticed the humans hiding in this place.

I scrutinized the building, especially the entrance. Humans were smart, and If I were them, I would make sure to place traps or anything that would alert me of the presence of intruders. At least, that’s what I thought.

The entrance was open, probably destroyed during the first day of the apocalypse. The hiding humans did not bother blockading the entrance. Well, for me, that was a good move. Blockading it would literally scream: “We’re here! We’re hiding!” to the monsters, after all.

I approached the entrance. As expected, it was there – a device that would alert the hiding humans if a monster entered this place. It was a pretty simple device actually. A thin string connected to chimes. A simple trap that would make those bells ring once someone made contact with the strings.

Aware of the trap, I carefully jumped over it and entered the building. The inside was a mess, with occasional corpses here and there, but if I were to compare it to the city outside, this would be on the moderate side. Probably a peaceful den, to some extent.

Carefully making moving, I searched the area for surviving humans. What I was doing right now was really dangerous, especially if I were found out. But I needed to do this, I knew.

I first checked the first and second floor. No one was there. Finally, I arrived at the third floor. It was at this place that I finally caught glimpse of human life. A young man was carrying pieces of wood, his body obviously strained by its weight. He tottered towards a room then said, “Open up.”

Soon enough, the door creaked open and he entered. In those few seconds wherein the door was open, with my unusually good eyes, I caught glimpse of what was inside. There were a lot of survivors there. More than a dozen of them.

“But, why is that…” my mumbling voice trailed off. I was not entirely sure if what I saw was correct. Based on what I saw, almost all of the survivors were elderly.

I slowly approached the door, my eyes vigilantly scanning my surroundings for any traps. The thick wooden door in front of me could probably withstand a couple of blows from a Minotaur, but there was no way it would protect them against those monsters. It would probably break in less than a minute.

Standing outside the door, I could hear the voices inside.

“That’s why I’m telling you! We should leave this place soon! You heard what they said on the radio yesterday, right?!”

The husky voice of a man was really loud. Was he stupid? He might give out their location at this rate. Now that I think about it, the voice that echoed outside the building before probably belonged to him.

“Are you telling us to just abandon these people? Is that it, Rey?!” said another man.

“Mart, just put the wood over there. With these, we’ll have enough arrows.” This time, a woman spoke. The sound of something hitting the ground was heard, then murmurs I could not decipher followed. It was really hard listening from this place.

“Give these guys a year and two and they’ll kick the bucket anyway. Bringing these baggage with us will just lead to our deaths. That’s why Sophia—,” said the husky voice.

“—Enough!” said the woman. Her voice was trembling, probably from rage. “I can’t believe you, Rey! Listen, even if I die, I will not abandon them! There’s nothing worse than scum like you that forsakes other people just to survive!”

“These damn grannies will die anyway! We should just use them as bait for those mons—"

A slapping sound was heard, and silence quickly followed.

“Just stop. Please,” said the woman, her voice sobbing.

“This is your decision, huh?” said the husky voice. It was a bit softer than before. There was rage and disappointment in it.

I finally noticed a small hole at the bottom of the door. It was inconspicuous, but after taking a look, I realized that it gave me a good view of what was inside.

Almost a dozen elderly people, most on a wheelchair. They wore crestfallen faces, something I was very familiar with. It was the face of someone that had been forsaken by another person. The face of someone betrayed by a person he trusts the most. It was the same face I made when I found out that my wife had found herself another husband. I was being constantly beaten up in jail during that time, but the pain in my heart easily drowned out the pain of in body after finding out that she had remarried. It was like a knife stabbed my heart, repeated it a thousand times, then tossed it into meat grinder. It was so painful that I ended up not eating anything for three days.

Inside the room, four people stood. A young woman, a gorgeous one at that, a bulky man in his early twenties, a skinny young man, and the young man I saw entering the room before. The rest were elderlies.

The silence in the room was deafening, and I could see that some of the elderly people were silently crying. It must have been really painful, being told right in the face that it was better for them to be discarded.

After reading the small placard on a nearby table, I learned that this place used to be a Home for the Elderly. The place where people send their grandparents after realizing they could not take care of them. I did not know what those four, young people’s connection to this place was, but they were probably employees. That was what I thought.

The young man from before that carried the pieces of wood broke the ice. He quickly ran towards the table, where a small transistor radio was placed.

“Hey, there’s a signal!” he excitedly said.

The rest of the group immediately came near the radio, their eyes expectantly looking at it. The radio made buzzing sounds. Damn, did it just say something? It was really hard to hear from this place.

“Bzzzt… Bzzzt… The army has successfully repelled… bzzzt… for those… Lamia Camp… come… open… bzzzt…”

I could see the confusion within the eyes of those that had listened to it, but at the same time, I could see the excitement that accompanied it.

“So, they successfully repelled the attack huh?” said the bulky man. So, he was the owner of the husky voice.

“What a relief. The regular announcements from the radio suddenly got cut off yesterday. I was worried that the army lost against those monsters,” said the young man.

The woman remained silent while biting her lips. She seemed to be in deep thought.

The radio made buzzing sounds again, and the same voice from before spoke. This time, it was clearer than before.

“To all the surviving humans in the city, I repeat, go to the Lamia Camp and take refuge. The government forces will protect you.”

My eyes widened after hearing this. If this was being broadcasted in the radio, then a lot of people must have gone to that place. Lamia Camp, huh? If I was not mistaken, that was a place almost outside the city, just right after crossing the Grand Cathedral. I had seen that place numerous times before, and I got to admit, it would be large enough to accommodate a few thousand refugees. My only worry was the rations. It would be no laughing matter to feed thousands of civilians. But since they were willing to go as far as announce to everyone that they were taking in survivors, they must have some leeway for that one.

After peeping at the room for a while, I have concluded that my wife and son was not inside. With that thought in mind, I started going back. I could hear quarreling voices, but I deemed that it would not be productive to listen and stay any longer. I only have a few hours left, and I plan on using that to go towards that camp.

Hey, hey, their voices were getting louder. Stupid. The monsters outside would hear you!

Just as I was thinking of this, the bell in the entrance rang. Quickly, the quarreling voices suddenly stopped, but the ringing of chimes below still continued. Afraid of what was going to come, I quickly went down to check what was going on. And I was right – monsters have entered the building. A lot of them.

I felt powerless as the Goblins came in droves, combing the floors for any signs of life. I had realized this before, but these creatures were not really as stupid as we originally thought. They were capable of making decisions, just like us humans. The only difference would probably be their way of following their orders to the utmost detail, like puppets led by strings.

Eventually, Minotaurs also entered the building, destroying a part of the entrance in the process. Their large bodies climbed the stairs, steams coming outs of their snouts.

I heard a scream above. The scream of a woman.

Beads of sweat flowed down incessantly on my face. My heart thumped. I somehow have an idea of what was happening above.

Damn it. They should have kept their voices low. Humans would always make mistakes during the course of their lives but this one was big, and it would definitely cost them their lives. I bit my lips at the thought.

Hesitant and afraid, my body was frozen in place. The screams of the humans above continued as Minotaurs roared and Goblins cackled. Slowly, the scent of fresh blood wafted through the air. It was enticing, telling me to go up and check its source.

After I have steeled my resolve, I decided to check the third floor. As expected, the monsters have made a mess of that place. Just a few moments ago, those people were alive, definitely full of energy as they bickered against each other. But now, all of them were nothing but corpses. The young men and the young woman must have put up a fight: I could see knives and steel pipes on the floor. Their bodies were crushed to paste, their limbs bent in impossible directions. The elderlies, on the other hand, must have died unable to do anything. Their mutilated bodies were still sitting on their wheelchairs, some of them missing a head and a limb or two.

It was a disgusting sight, and even though the scent of fresh blood was enticing, I have the urge to vomit. The Goblins began dragging the dead body of the young woman from before, along with the bodies of some of the elderlies.

I puked on the ground. Just a few minutes ago, these guys were alive. They were full of life.

Once again, I was reminded of how cruel this world could be. In just a blink of an eye, everything could go wrong. In just a blink of an eye, everything could be taken away from you. This incident solidified that thought within me.

The monsters climbed the higher floors as they searched for any living humans. After combing the entire building, they left entirely, leaving behind fresh dead bodies.

I stood in the room alone. The place where those humans had taken refuge before. As I looked at the broken door, I thought of how thin it was, of how easy it was to break it apart. Why did I think that it was sturdy before? I wryly smiled. That was definitely stupid and naïve of me.

Blood blanketed the ground and what remained of the crushed radio was scattered about. With the female corpses gone, what surrounded me were the fresh corpses of the guys. The bulky man from before had both his arm pulled out of his body. His head was intact, and the eyes were open, with dried tears evident on the cheeks.

I did not know particularly why I did it, but I decided to use identify on the corpse.

Human Corpse (Male)

32 Years Old

The chef of Living Hearts Foundation. He had spent more than a decade helping abandoned elderlies.

Alchemy Ingredient: Rank D+

Although male humans are edible, they taste nasty, like a pile of dung mixed with grime.

I immediately regretted my decision of using the Identify skill. I’d rather not have read about that.

I gnashed my teeth. If I was this powerless, it would be useless even if meet my family.

Should I use the remaining time to finish the quest? The reward Exp was a bit decent, and it would really help in gaining a level up.

“But what if something happens to Franchesca and Marco during that time…”

My voice trailed off as my mind fell into deep thought. I considered the pros and the cons. If I focused on becoming stronger, I would have more options when helping my family – or the other humans for that matter. But during that time, there was the possibility that my family would die – if they were still alive right now. This world was cruel and unpredictable. These dead bodies around me were proof of that.

I shook my head thrice as I dismissed the negative thoughts.

“They’re still alive, Nick. They’re definitely still alive,” I mumbled.

My gaze landed on a corpse and for a moment, I imagined what it would be like if I suddenly encountered the corpse of my family. I shivered at the thought. My stomach churned and I resisted the urge to vomit.

Uncertainties and possibilities. My mind was in turmoil because of it.

I stormed my mind for the best possible choice, for the best way out of this hellhole.

And I finally decided. Using the remaining hours left, I will finish the quest. I will devote all my energy on becoming stronger. Strong enough to protect what was important.

My stomach grumbled. The hunger from before had come knocking back. I have decided on this path. Now, time to hunt down some Goblins.