Chương 69: Chapter 65

"Hide." Sobelle ordered Chael as soon as she processed what they were dealing with. She helped the merchant drag the wagon past the ruined walls of a house and inside the structure, "wait here, I'll fight them off."

"Can you even do that?" Chael asked in worry, she reached for Sobelle but the latter dodged her grab effortlessly. She stomped her foot, "Sobelle! You can't fight them alone! What if you get bitten and get infections? What if your body starts to rot?! You know how dangerous greenskins can be, so why—""I don't have to do this alone." Sobelle paused, the feeling she got from Chael was that the merchant believed she was helpless when it came to aiding the fight.

Sobelle thought of a way to remedy that, and what she came up with was both simple and effective.

"Make shrines with sacrifices and ask the greater spirits to bless me physically and to keep me safe during the fight." She walked out of the house and checked the surrounding areas for any signs of approaching Goblins. When she found none, Sobelle went and demolished some of the houses in order to gather materials. Sobelle struck the supporting pillar of one of the larger houses.

It was made using wooden logs smoked with various plants to ensure longevity, so breaking it would only turn the wood weak but it wasn't like she was going to use it for a long time. She just needed to build a defensive line good enough to protect Chael. The head of her axe struck the wood violently, and despite it being made of stone, the damage it did to the pillar was far more devastating than Sobelle could have ever expected.

She assumed it was a combination of her new skills, as well as the axe's enhanced striking power that allowed her to bring down the pillar in as little as 4 swings. She stepped out of the way just as the column collapsed under its own weight and fell to the ground. A miniature earthquake briefly shook the surroundings and Sobelle had to wait for a second before she could step forward and start working on the wood.

She was about to chop it into workable pieces when she realized that she could use it to block the shattered wall of the house Chael hid in. It would be so much better than the palisades she planned on making as it'd actually act as a proper blockade against the greenskins. With that in mind, Sobelle pushed her fingers under the log and with a heavy huff, hefted it into the air. Only one half of the log was being actively carried by her, so she had to drag the rest of the damn thing to the house.

Sobelle expected a lot of resistance and maybe some rests somewhere down the road, but none of that was necessary seeing as she easily carried the massive object to its intended destination.

"What is that?" Chael being surprised wasn't that weird at all, Sobelle would react the same way if she saw someone carry such a giant piece of lumber without aid from other humans or the benefit of a wagon.

"How are you doing that?"

"With my strength, of course." Sobelle figured that [Inexhaustible Vessel] played a crucial role in carrying the log, followed by her 21 points in [Strength] and then after that, all her other strength boosting skills.

"I'm as shocked as you are, believe me."

"What are you gonna do with it?" Chael's shock disappeared and she just accepted that her lover could apparently do something like this.

"Wait—" Chael was cut off after Sobelle used the pillar to block the gap. Her voice was barely audible the next time she spoke,"Sobelle?! This is not gonna keep me safe! Let me out!"

"Please, just make the shrines. I promise you that I'll be fine, just calm down and think about it." Sobelle sighed, this was why she didn't think this was a good idea. Yet she chose to do it anyway, because the alternative was leaving herself vulnerable to the greenskins.

'Waiting like this will only waste precious time preparing against the greenskins.' This was Sobelle's thoughts as she silently leaned against the stone walls of the structure. Or what was left of them. She closed her eyes and breathed in and out, her senses were just sharp enough that she was able to smell what was left of the greenskins' stench after they raided the village. She could also hear them move in the distance, though the sound was faint. Did you know this text is from a different site?

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"Okay, I trust you. I've never seen anyone carry such a giant piece of lumber with ease so I trust you, okay? Don't you dare break that trust!"

"I won't." Sobelle pushed herself off the building and finally started her preparations. She broke off another pillar and just let the building collapse, with this lumber, she made several wooden spears. They had no heads, and were closer to stakes instead of a proper spear. She made several of them then used that to kill the Goblins from range. She threw her weapon far, and it flew straight through the chest of a running greenskin before goring the Goblin next to it. Two dead, just like that.

Sobelle had a feeling that these things waited because their shaman was casting a ritual, and so she needed to disrupt that process as much as she could. She kept throwing at the forest, and she managed to land a hit every single time. She did not know just how many she killed, but had a feeling it was enough to dwindle the numbers of her enemies substantially.

[Flow State] helped her so much that Sobelle believed this was her greatest skill yet, it didn't compare to [Biological Hypertrophy] in terms of increasing her strength, but the fact that she could accurately hit targets from a distance more than made up for it. If she were to be asked what skill she'd never discard, then she'd say [Flow State] was that skill. It was simply too useful to lose. Another spear was taken from the ground, and Sobelle pulled her arm back in preparation for another throw...

Only to see the same projectile coming her way. She weaved left and dodged the thrown object but the thought of the greenskins using her own weaponry disturbed her badly enough to stop throwing them. For a while, she did nothing but dodge. She counted all the spears and only came out when she confirmed that all the sticks she'd thrown had been returned to her. After that, she used them to make palisades around the house that Chael occupied rather than using them as throwing weapons.

And Sobelle believed this was the end of the greenskins adapting to her attacks. She was wrong. Her ears picked up buzzing and she was just lucky enough that whoever threw the spear at her had a bad aim. It hit the stone wall to her right instead of her, and for a second, Sobelle looked at the limp stick before she burst into action and took cover.

'How are they using spears?' Sobelle asked herself this as yet another stick came for her. It missed again, and she had a feeling that however threw the first spear, the one that almost hit her, was probably an evolved caste rather than a normal greenskin. Several spears came her way, and most of them barely got close, a lot just fell off the mark. It gave Sobelle enough confidence to rise from her hiding spot and face the greenskins head on.

Luckily for her, this was exactly the right decision as the moment she had her eyes on the Goblins. As not only did this allow her to see the charging horde of greenskins, but she also spotted a hulking figure standing in the back. It carried a rock the size of her head. The Pudge groaned as it tilted its body at an angle that'd allow it to easily throw the rock, its arm bent down, elbows tensing as it got ready for a throw.

Sobelle knew then that if she were to let this thing succeed, Chael would be left vulnerable. Her spear jumped from her hand and she caught it again seconds after, it was the quickest way she could reposition her grip on the weapon and ensured that she had enough time to aim before a shot. She pulled her hand back and then whipped it forward in the same motion, the spear spun as it headed straight for the Pudge's head...

Blood splattered on the ground behind the towering Goblin as Sobelle's spear punctured its skull and pierced through its entire head. The creature fell down, lifeless. The sight of this did not deter the greenskins and instead invigorated them, for they now had less competition when it came to breeding the woman in front of them. The horde of Goblins let out celebratory cries as they ran for Sobelle, but this wasn't the most concerning thing about them.

Fervor was one thing, Goblins do that all the time, they were insatiable bastards that got excited for anything that resembled pleasure. Sobelle was even used to the sight, but what she wasn't used to was them carrying weapons. Bucklers and spears to be more specific. Some of them also had primitive axes: or in other words, they had the same set of gear that Sobelle wielded back when she first fought that Nogg's army.

'Are they connected?' Sobelle thought in worry as she dodged yet another spear. There was no sign of the evolved caste responsible for the accurate shot earlier.

'Is the same Nogg leading them? Where is he? Where did the rest of them come from?!' Was she wrong in thinking she wiped out the greenskins? Or was this another tribe entirely?