Chapter 3: A Test of Life or Death
Irene debated between fight or flight when she slowly moved around the tree trunk and found one of the goblins facing away from her. It was a brief relief because she knew she didn't have time to sit there and wait for something to happen.
Her small hand gripped the leatherbound handle of her dagger and she focused after exhaling.
Considering goblins were small but she was even smaller, she decided sneaking up really was her only option.
With no time to waste, the girl rushed forward with her sword ready and raised. Hope that she remembered how to swing a sword was forgotten. The lessons she learned felt like second nature.
She supported the blade with both hands so that all her power was going into one slice. It was risky because that sort of maneuver was more difficult to recover from. It also meant she had to be accurate and lethal in one blow.
Throwing her weight into it, she half tackled, half stabbed the goblin and the dagger pierced the monster's back and lung. It eventually pierced the dirt of the forest floor as well.
The mud was thick and damp but not muddy. It held onto her sword and, when she saw the goblin starting to stir despite the seemingly decisive blow she had given it, she reached over her shoulder, feeling the feather of one of her arrows.
She used one of the arrows as a spear and stabbed the goblin multiple times until she was certain it was dead.
Unfortunately, the man it had chased wasn't lucky enough to get away unscathed. She saw him weeping as he scooted backwards until his back was against a tree and Irene was able to see that his foot was mutilated. He would certainly never use it again even if a healer came and used their mana to stop the bleeding.