Gauss looked at his Adventurer’s Manual. As expected.
The racial trait he had stolen from the goblins—Quicm Digestion—had officially been upgraded from Basic to Elite. (Changed)
Reading through the description…
Energy Storage Glands appeared to be a more advanced evolution, similar in function to a camel’s hump, capable of storing excess energy in the body ahead of time and converting it on demand into stamina or mana.
Basically, a hidden emergency backup battery.
Gauss felt as though his "blue bar"—his mana pool—had just silently been extended even further.
Still, this Manual was really leading him down a specific path. It was clearly encouraging him to kill more of the origin host species, i.e., goblins.
The more he killed, the better the trait's performance.
Looking at the naming scheme—Basic, Elite… he figured it matched the monster tier system in the Monster Index.
So theoretically, if he kept going, this trait could evolve to Exceptional, Lord-tier, Legendary, or even higher?
But just getting from Basic to Elite took over 200 goblin kills. Reaching the top tier… the numbers were going to be astronomical.
Oh well. One step at a time.
Even in its current form, this trait was already amazing.
Especially in combat—if an enemy thought he was cornered and exhausted, he could silently activate this hidden reservoir, restore stamina and mana, and jump back into the fight. It was a huge advantage.
And the more he upgraded it, the bigger that hidden "reserve bar" would get.
The goblin village had been completely wiped out—for now.
Off in the distance, Kevin and the other two survivors had already put on some clothes and now nervously approached the blood-soaked Gauss.
“Sir Adventurer… is it safe now?”
“Yeah,” Gauss nodded, shifting his attention to their still-pale faces. “It’s just the three of you? No other survivors?”
“Thank you for saving us.”
“We’re truly grateful!”
Though their words were filled with gratitude, deep inside, there was an undeniable lingering fear.
They couldn’t even meet Gauss’s gaze.
The ferocity he had displayed while butchering goblins left too deep of a psychological scar. Their instincts told them they were still in the presence of something dangerous.
This wasn’t about his character. It was simple biological self-preservation.
Especially now—his body still radiated killing intent, and he hadn’t consciously tried to suppress it yet. That made his presence even more suffocating.
Gauss noticed their trembling limbs and averted eyes.
For a moment, his emotions stirred.
Are they… afraid of me? ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NoveI[F]ire.net
Do I look that terrifying to others now?
A trace of conflict passed through his gaze.
The joy from upgrading his trait was suddenly diluted.
“…Here. Eat something,” he said, handing them some bread and jerky. “Stay hidden. Once the rest of the goblins return, I’ll finish them off, then get you out of the forest.”
He turned away, giving them space, and sat down on a clean rock a short distance away.
While he quietly ate to recover energy, his newly upgraded Energy Storage Glands went to work, storing up surplus resources.
The three men exchanged looks, shame thick in their hearts.
Even in the presence of their savior, their bodies were still instinctively terrified.
They knew Gauss wasn’t hostile—but they just couldn’t help the fear.
They felt utterly useless.
They hadn’t been able to fight back, couldn’t help him, and had just sat there trembling like prey.
“I want to become an adventurer.”
“Yeah. I want to be like that man—killing monsters, not sitting here waiting to be food.”
“…You’ll probably die.”
“…Then… then I’ll come with you.”
Though Gauss sat a distance away, his high Perception let him hear the conversation clearly in the silent, blood-soaked village.
Three more new adventurers, huh.
He glanced sideways at them. Their terrified expressions were fading, replaced by a faint spark of purpose.
Maybe that’s not such a bad thing.
He looked away, turning his focus to the village gate.
His stamina and mana were slowly recovering.
The goblins finally returned.
Their chattering and footsteps echoed as they cheerfully marched back home.
But the moment they entered the clearing, their smiles froze.
Confusion turned to horror.
They had only been gone a short while…
But their familiar village now looked like a stranger’s corpse.
Blood soaked the ground. Organs, severed hands, heads. Goblin children cleaved in half. The overturned pot had extinguished the bonfire. Their huts were toppled.
Everything was gray. Silent. Broken.
The only living figure in the whole village—
The man standing at the center.
He slowly rose from a rock, lifting a white wand that shimmered ominously.
The seasoned goblin chief behind the group screamed in panic.
But he was already too late.
Three glowing blue missiles ripped through the air, slamming into the crowd of goblins.
Six or seven of them were obliterated in a single blast.
Gauss didn’t stop. His hand moved faster.
These clustered goblins? They were no different from lemmings.
Another perfect hit. Blood flew like rain. Everything in his vision turned red.
The biggest goblin in the group—likely the new leader—watched in rage and grief as everything it knew was annihilated.
A single blood-red tear slipped down its cheek.
That man… ruined everything.
The hatred welled up in its chest.
Gauss’s image burned into its mind, growing larger and larger, until the world was nothing but him.
It had to die killing him.
Suddenly, a dark, eerie power surged in its brain.
Its body jerked violently—some ancient power awakening within.
But a full-powered magic missile tore through the air.
The chieftain looked down, wide-eyed.
Its powerful chest had a gaping hole.
Cold wind flowed freely through the cavity.
The goblin’s lips trembled. Its mind—sharp for once—was filled with disbelief.
Just a little longer…
But the light in its eyes vanished.
Whatever dark power had started to awaken flickered and vanished with it.
Gauss frowned slightly.
For a brief moment, he’d felt something unnatural, like some unknown force had tried to interfere—had focused its gaze on the goblin.
Eliminating the chieftain first had always been part of his plan.
And if that guy had the guts to glare at him like that and challenge him directly, the least he could do was answer it head-on.
Gauss channeled more mana into his wand.
More than enough to wipe out the rest.
The goblins scattered in a panic. Gauss advanced, launching missile after missile.
He chased them all the way out of the village to an open field.
As the final missile launched…
He was the only one left standing.