Streni raced across the Wildlands, cursing as branches and bushes whipped against her. She had been travelling for about a month now, fleeing from her failure, returning for assessment; she was not looking forward to it. She spent her time thinking about how she would explain what happened, but the damned Swordsman’s words kept distracting her.

“Explore the world. Go on holiday! You might learn something.”

He must have such a wicked tongue to make her doubt like this. She would not listen to him, it was obviously a ploy of sorts, and by refusing, she would make her devotion stronger. The [Divine Saviour] was the only hope for humanity to ascend; she knew this. She was heading back toward the closest church; it was there that she would receive judgement.

“Did you know that there were children on the boat?”

She shoved the shameful memory aside. After floating for many hours, she decided to set up camp. With practised motions, she pulled out a tent from her dimensional storage ring, setting it up swiftly, and then got a campfire going. She took the moment to pray. She knelt down and mentally reached out for the comforting presence that she was used to. It took her an unusually long time to find it, making her a little worried. But, when she did, it slammed into her, filling her to the brim with heavenly joy. She was where she belonged.

She bowed her head further, and whispered, “Oh Saviour, Holy Will of humanity, guide me in all my actions, so that more may be comforted by your flock, and lead us all to greatness. Let your divine presence be our blanket, let your judgement be our mor-”

“You’re going to kill kids, just because someone told you too?”

“FUCK’S SAKE – oh shit…” The elation that had filled her, recoiled and then began to brew like a storm. She immediately prostrated herself. “I beg your forgiveness. There is no excuse for my actions.” The roiling didn’t stop, only build. She started to tremble, and it grew higher. Just as it seemed it was about to strike, it blew away like a breeze, the presence completely absent. She stayed still for a bit longer, until she slowly raised her head. She tentatively reached out for it again, only to find… nothing. Tears leaked from her eyes, and she started wailing.

Hours later, she sat staring into the dying embers of the fire. She didn’t move when she heard rustling in the bushes in front of her, nor when a small figure wrapped in rags came out and froze at the sight of her. It was when it slowly reached behind its back and withdrew a knife, that her eyes sharpened. It retreated and she tracked it sneaking around. When it was right behind her, she waited for sounds of movement; when she heard a scuff, she floated into the air, causing the small figure to lunge underneath her. It whirled around, but it was already too late. Her palm glowed with white light, weaker than it used to be, but still enough for…

‘Ding’ [Child]

A child?

The small figure threw its knife at her, but she simply zipped out of the way. The person then snarled and jumped, trying to reach her. “Child, if you wanted food, you’d only have to ask. It is my solemn duty to save our kind.” Her words had no effect, and the brat reached down for a rock. Just before she could stop them though, another figure in rags came blurring out of the woods, and kicked the child up the buttocks? She gaped as the small thing went flying over with a cry and landed head-first into a bush. The new person barked a command in some sort of guttural language, before turning to face her. She blinked a few times, until her face became outraged.

“What sort of treatment is that? You could have just thrown them?!” The new arrival didn’t respond, and pulled out a familiar knife. The one the child threw. Except, this person seemed to know what they were doing. Streni sighed. “Listen, I do not mean any harm to you. Do not force me to fight. It will not end well.” The person, cocked their head, surprised. Streni identified her on a whim.

‘Ding’ [Wild Assassin Lv 45]

“You are too low level anyway, and I am very much not in the mood to fight.” The Assassin seemed to be considering her words, but they were interrupted by the screaming of the brat, who threw another rock at her. “ENOUGH.” She raised a finger, condensing her light at its point, and blasted it by the child’s ear. She did it on the left side so the carer could see, but the Assassin had a resigned posture. I suppose a brat like thi- Her eyes widened as she saw the child again. Her small beam had been just enough to blow off its hood, revealing a green head, pointed ears, sharp teeth and red eyes. Goblins. A flare of anger burned in her chest, and her face twisted into a snarl. I could redeem myself! By killing them I could- The Wild Assassin took her hood off as well, revealing a woman. She blinked but then began to notice details: Her skin had a slight green tinge to it, her ears were more pointed than normal, and the glow of the fire reflected red in her eyes. The Rouge stood protectively in front of the child, who was growling. She smacked him in the face without looking behind her, and barked another command, this time with desperation.

“… You would protect your child?” She stared into the woman’s eyes. They didn’t reply, but the answer was obvious. A memory flashed in her mind before she could suppress it.

“Mum!” She wailed as the woman fought like a feral cat. They didn’t reply, only screamed.

“… I see.”

Her thoughts were blank. She just floated there, gaze fixed on the two in front of her. Slowly, the Assassin began to shuffle back, glancing at the child and then her. She didn’t react. The woman continued, grabbing the brat by the ear and dragging them backwards, until they had disappeared behind the bushes. She heard the quick pattering of feet, and when it became quiet, she slumped back to the ground. “…I’m a failure,” she whispered.

The next day she awoke with a dry mouth and a horrible headache. She fumbled out a flask from her storage and drank from it greedily. With shaking fingers she packed up her tent, and prepared to leave.

She flew across the ground. She kept her attention purely on dodging foliage and thorns. Oh by the Saviour, I miss flying. It took her a few moments to realise her vain use of her God’s title. She winced. Is it even worth going back at this point? After so many… mistakes? Her mind went in circles, distracting her from her surroundings. She had shown her true colours, in prayer no less. She would be going back for them to make her a simple servant; Which was… exactly what she deserved.

She heard a squeal from nearby, and her head whipped to the side. She realised that she had stopped moving, completely unaware of what was happening around her. She was lucky though there wasn’t anything nearby. Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar scream. She felt hesitant, but a part of her knew that she needed to go.

Moving in the direction of the noise, she began to hear more. Grunts and snorts from some kind of boar, as well as the ripping of flesh. She hurried, and bursted into the clearing. Her eyes immediately fell on the beast, a giant thing of muscle and flame. It snorted, sending a plume of fire towards the singed Goblins.

‘Ding’ [Fire tou-

She fired a beam through its brain. It collapsed, and she ignored the experience notification. She hovered over towards them, plucking the knife out of the creature's hide. They stared at each other for a moment of silence, and then she turned around. “Where are you heading to?” she asked as she started carving the meat off.

There was no reply for a moment. “What do you want?”

“Answers.”

Again, another moment of silence. “We’re going to the other Goblin tribes.” There was a gasp from the child.

She paused, before nodding slowly. She didn’t say anything, her thoughts jumping in different directions.

“Can you take us there?”

Her cut slipped. “Why would I do that?”

“Why would a believer help Goblins?”

“I told you. Answers.”

“I’ll tell you whatever you want if you take us.”

She faced the Assassin again. The woman had a hand around her brat’s mouth, while stopping him from flailing with her other. Her expression was determined. Her brown eyes glinted red in the light.

She sighed. I’m a failure. “You tell me your story, and I’ll take you.”

They raced across the land. Both Goblins clutching at her neck and arms. The child was whooping with delight, squeezing her whenever she had to sharply dodge. The mother seemed to be having a less than pleasant time. Her pale green face, the more common shade of Goblins now. I’m glad I finally invested some points into strength. She had experienced first-hand what having unbalanced Stats could do. The Assassin turned her head and retched noisily. She grimaced. Damn myself for being such a fool!

They eventually set up camp. The journey had been most uncomfortable. She set up her tent, her hands no longer shaking as much. The other two simply sat down and stared into the fire. Both of them were exhausted, although for different reasons. She pulled out some of the carved boar and set about roasting it. The whole time they had been awkwardly silent. Streni glanced at the woman. “What is your name?”

The woman grunted. “Osia.”

“Osia!?”

The Assassin glared at her. “Yes, is it that surprising?”

Streni gaped at her. “Well… yes. It’s a very beautiful name.”

The Goblin sniffed. “We like to be pretty sometimes.”

“And what about him?”

The Child was completely focused on the sizzling meat, and didn’t respond to her gesture. “Oh… I call him Pebbles” Osia coughed and waved the brat away when he looked up.

“Pebbles?” Streni struggled to keep her smirk out of her voice.

Osia growled. “Yes, Pebbles. I told him it was the name of a bear…”

She snorted and glanced at the boy, before becoming quiet for a bit. “That’s not such a bad name either.” The Assassin eyed her suspiciously but nodded her agreement. The meat was ready by that point, and they all began to eat. She did not enjoy the food; it lacked spices, or even vegetables for that matter. However, the Goblins devoured it, which she couldn’t help but feel a little proud of.

“So you wanted to know my story? Sure, a Goblin child was lost and hid near a village. A girl found the Goblin one day, and didn’t know what it was. They played together in secret. Years went by, the girl had grown up not liking the people in her town. She only liked the Goblin, who grew up to become a strong hunter. Then one day the girl had a fight with people in her village. Goblin saw and protected her from shitty humans. The Goblin took the girl away and healed her. When she was done, she went back but humans threw rocks at her, calling her dirty.” She shrugged. “The Girl had enough. She went back to the Goblin and stayed with him. One day they had sex and I was born. The end.”

The only sound was Pebbles’ soft snoring, while Streni did her best to not glare at the woman. “That was by far, the worst tale I have ever heard.” The woman just shrugged again. “What about afterwards? What happened to your parents?”

Osia sighed. “Mama died, Papa died. I had learnt enough to survive, and wandered around, sometimes staying in settlements. One day, I found Pebbles, alone and being attacked by wolves. We heard of Goblin tribes running, and so here we are.”

“Your…parents died?”

“Common for Goblins.” The conversion didn’t continue after that, and Streni crawled over to her tent, activating its camouflage runes, before falling asleep inside – Dreaming.

She crawled through the ash, trying desperately not to breathe. She slipped under bits of rubble, catching a glimpse every so often of the green-skinned creatures. Her eyes widened as she saw them tearing bodies up with glee, and then tossing it in front of the survivors. Bile bubbled into her mouth, and she swallowed it with a grimace. She just had to keep moving, Mum had told her to run.

She stopped when she realised there was no more cover left to hide behind. It was an open stretch from where she was to the ruined walls of the town. She bit her lip, and peeked out, looking for anyone. She couldn’t see any signs, so she carefully breathed through her nose, and dashed forwards. The distance seemed to stretch in front of her; her small gasps ticking like a clock. She made it about half way when her keen ears heard a sob. Her head whipped and she paused. There was another green-skinned person, clutching a small body. The person was shaking, doing a half-cry that she recognised so well, trying to hold back their tears. As if in slow-motion, the green person raised their head and locked eyes with her. They blinked a few times, clearing out the tears, before a murderous expression crossed their face. But, it was gone a moment later, the man just looking resigned. Their head bowed back to the small body again. Streni didn’t waste time, she sprinted away, even faster than before. She didn’t stop even when she passed the walls, continuing into the forest.

“Child halt!” She was broken out of her daze by a powerful voice. She looked up and saw an angel. She had wings of white radiance, eyes of pure brilliance, and a face so beautiful and full of love that her breath caught. The woman moved down from the sky, kneeling in front of her. “Oh you poor thing…” The woman hugged her, the warmth radiating from her heart was so good. She started to tremble, tears finally falling free. The angel leaned back and regarded her seriously. “They will never do this again. I will ensure it.” She gently picked up Streni in a princess carry, and flew up high into the sky.

Her glow grew brighter. “See the fate of the wicked, child.”

The sky rumbled, and became white. Streni dug her face into the woman’s arms, away from the burning light. When it dimmed, she turned to look at what had happened. Where there used to be her home, was now a massive crater. There was nothing left, the damage stretching all the way to the… walls.

“Wha- there were others! I saw them!”

The angel shook her head. “I was too late.”

She awoke with her face wet. Rubbing her cheeks, she got ready. Her two passengers said nothing about her red eyes.

The next day was much like the one before, except with less retching, thankfully. They were speeding along, when a roar blasted them, stopping them instantly. She shook off the Ability and spun to the direction it came from. Off in the distance she could see smoke starting to rise. She began to move towards it, only for Osia to rap her on the head. “What are you doing? Don’t go towards monsters.”

Streni didn’t stop moving. “It is my duty to save humanity.”

“What if not human?”

She faltered, turning her head to her. “Well obviously I…” She frowned. The visions that had been shared with her, the future of the world…she was just now beginning to realise that…It had only been humans. How could she have missed that?

A feeling rose up in her, one that she hadn’t felt in a very long time. Doubt.

Something clicked and she slowly started to fall to the ground. The Goblin started to panic. “What’s happening!?”

‘Ding’ You have lost the Class [Believer In The Divine Saviour].

She sank to her knees, watching the growing fire in the distance. She saw with a blank expression, a massive winged shadow rear up in the flames. She noted how its bellow blasted the closest trees down. It then flew up into the sky, its red scales glinting in the dawning light. A snake-like neck uncoiled, aiming a massive jaw downwards. A mountain of fire fell down from its mouth. She could feel the air being sucked in to fuel the intense burning; the sound it was making was not quite loud enough to cover Osia’s screaming. Seven long dreadful seconds, she watched, counting. She was quicker.

Then it was done. The dragon lingered for a moment, before flying away. Slowly, she rose to her feet and began to walk. The Goblin yelled something, aggressively; she didn’t pay any attention. She walked, and walked. Her eyes never strayed from the destruction. When she had arrived, the fires were dying down, revealing ash. She kept walking, moving to the centre. When she arrived, she looked around at everything. Tears were flowing freely down her face. “He- Hello! Is anyone… IS ANYONE LEFT!” The words tore out of her throat. She began to wander, still calling desperately. “Please… LET SOMEONE BE ALIVE!”

She stepped on something with a clang. She blinked, and looked down. She knelt, her blood stained robes becoming ashen. She knocked on the floor. She didn’t hear anything, but she didn’t move. Slowly, the trapdoor opened a smidge. Two eyes gleamed in the darkness. “Hi,” she said quietly. The trapdoor didn’t move. “Can I come in?” It closed immediately.

She waited there for hours, staring at the thing. She felt something poke her face, and she slowly turned to look at what it was. Osia was standing there, ash in her hair. Her face was worried. She said something.

“… said you would take us. Did you lie?”

Streni blinked. “I lost my Class.”

The Goblin woman’s eyes widened, before narrowing. She let herself be observed, and asked, “What does it say?”

“[Woman Lv 70]”

She nodded, and returned to look at the floor. She heard a sigh next to her and a thump. Out of the corner of her eye she peered at Osia. “You’re not going to leave?”

The Goblin shrugged. “Probably be fine.”

She didn’t respond, and they continued to watch. Eventually the trap door opened again, the two eyes going from her, to Osia and flinching. “Its-”

“What are you looking at?” The Rogue grumbled, crossing her arms. Streni gave her a look, but the door opened a little wider.

Surprised, she cocked her head. “We were walking by when we saw the…” The trapdoor lowered a little. “… that thing. We just want to help.”

“You want to help.”

“WE just want to help.” The Goblin grumbled again, and then stalked off. The trapdoor hadn’t moved. “Will you come out? I have food. We can take you… No, that’s not what you want, is it? We can protect you. Not from that thing, but anything else, we can.”

The lid hovered between closed and open, before slowly creaking upwards. She raised her eyebrows as a wolf boy watched her warily – a Cani. She smiled, a little painfully, and offered her hand. The Cani boy’s mouth twitched, but then he looked into her face, and then slowly grasped it.