The exchange between Shirota and Vijak was intense and Skullius who was witnessing it from the ‘safety’ of the mud hut could barely tear his socket flames off it.

He brought up the status of Ukur and gasped.

~~~

[ Name : Ukur ]

[ Tier :  2 ]

[ Class : Shaman ]

[ Level : 14 ]

[ Race  : Humanoid Goblin ]

[ Inv. Status  : Regretful ]

——-

[ Stats ]

[ Strength : 50 ]

[ Agility : 51 ]

[ Intelligence : 77 ]

[ Endurance : 56 ]

[ Luck : 4 ]

—–

[ Health : 195/200 ]

—–

[ Mana : 415/450 ]

—–_.

~~~~

“Bro, look at those stats!” Skullius exclaimed as he saw the stats of the leader of the Bloated River clan. His Intelligence was even higher than his, which was what hurt Skullius the most!

There was no mistaking it, this goblin could obliterate him and from the looks of that hazy figure that floated above him, Skullius knew that this guy had a vast amount of experience.

His sockets then moved to the goblin with brownish skin that grinned as it dodged the blade of Shirota.

~~~

[ Name : Vijak ]

[ Tier :  2 ]

[ Class : Mage ]

[ Level : 18 ]

[ Race  : Vile Ilk Goblin ]

[ Inv. Status : Ecstatic ]

——-

[ Stats ]

[ Strength : 56 ]

[ Agility : 58 ]

[ Intelligence : 83 ]

[ Endurance : 50 ]

[ Luck : 5 ]

—–

[ Health : 220/220 ]

—–

[ Mana : 550/550 ]

—–

~~~

Skullius grunted as he saw the figures on these creatures. They were…powerful.

The amount of mana they had was incredible. While he definitely wasn’t a slouch, the fact that these creatures were together would spell doom for him if he were to join.

The status for the last goblin popped up in Skullius’ view and he couldn’t help but squint his flames.

~~~

[ Name : Shirota ]

[ Tier :  2 ]

[ Class : Mist Swordsman ]

[ Level : 10 ]

[ Race  : Foul Goblin ]

[ Inv. Status : Focused ]

——-

[ Stats ]

[ Strength : 60 ]

[ Agility : 61 ]

[ Intelligence : 60 ]

[ Endurance : 57 ]

[ Luck : 5 ]

—–

[ Health : 250/250 ]

—–

[ Mana : 380/380 ]

—–

~~~

“Ohh. That one seems even more dangerous,” said Skullius.

Through the information packet he had managed to understand about the different classes which made him appreciate his own class.

Special classes, which were anything that wasn’t a  normal classes; advanced and hidden, aided in getting bonus stats.

On the subject of stats, such a thing as permanent stat reduction had been made known to him. It was when stats were subtracted from an individual by factors such as the environment or by high level skills imposed by a higher existence.

Skullius had noted some of the inconsistencies between some of the goblin’s stats and recognised that it might have been this issue.

Were these goblins actually living in an environment that was adverse to their growth?

Possibly.

Skullius recognised the figure of Shmeija who was being tended to by Ukur.

“That’s the goblin from that orc place,” Skullius said. That goblin was the weakest among the four, which made him stand out a bit.

Vijak opened his arms wide and a large influx of mana compounded in-between.

Slowly, a bright orange sphere formed, emitting a scorching heat that made Shirota back away.

“I see you have enhanced yourselves, giving yourself quite the durability. Good! Let’s see how you handle this!” growled Vijak.

The bright orange sphere stifled the air and then, something else was added to it. It was a dark substance that oozed from Vijak’s body and somehow assimilated itself into the growing ball of flame and giving it a darker shade.

Shirota furrowed his brows and took a stance.

He spread his legs and sheathed his sword, glaring at Vijak who was preparing his spell.

Skullius paid rapt attention, mesmerised by how Vijak was manipulating the flames.

This was wholly different from how the short staff released the [Flame Shot]. This was a true mastery of fire and this attack about to be released by Vijak was many times stronger than the one from Skullius’ staff.

Unbeknownst to Skullius, Red Rage was also paying attention, but not to Vijak. The boar’s sockets were gazing deeply at Shirota’s stance as he seemed to be extremely confident about himself.

Red Rage’s sockets then moved to Shmeija who was starting to look better under the healing of Ukur.

Ukur himself was gnashing his teeth while contemplating on how the exchange between the two would pan out.

Vijak was stronger than Shirota level-wise with a large mana pool while Shirota was stronger stat-wise, his class being a special one.

It was hard to imagine who would win as Vijak was a veteran.

They had met up once after escaping from the Goblin swamp, a short war erupting before Ukur fled again.

Ukur wasn’t sure what Vijak had been doing all this time. He was probably stronger than he looked.

Vijak finally finished with his preparation.

He grinned as he brought his hands to both sides of the sphere, as if touching it and then…

[Rancid Scorching Sphere]!

The sphere shot towards Shirota without warning, being a glowing orange streak like a mini sun that oozed of a dark smoke at its tail!

Shirota’s image brightened as the attack approached, but he never broke his stance, remaining with one hand on the hilt while the other held onto the sheath!

“Shirota!” Ukur screamed as he feared for the goblin’s safety.

The attack reached Shirota and consumed him in its heat while he uttered no words and disappeared within the bright burst of flame that followed!

Tongues of fire blew outwards with a earth shattering explosion that decimated the nearest huts as well as the remaining goblins who ran for their lives only to ultimately be devoured by the fire!

To those that were out of its range though, they found that breathing became difficult, their flesh starting to change as their noses felt blocked.

Poison!

The combination of fire and poison had taken everyone by surprise, except for the Black Scorn Clan goblins who were immune. They had backed away when they saw Vijak about to cast this spell, escaping the flames.

Vijak guffawed as he saw the destruction before him covered by the thick blanket of dust and the crisp sound of the burnt ground.

A certain Boneman and his companion who had been out of the attack’s range marvelled at the display of power while within the comfort of the hut, being unaffected by the drifting poison.

“Mastery of fire…” muttered Skullius as he replayed what he had seen Vijak do.

Ukur could be seen as the smoke cleared, wheezing and panting as the image that stood above him had erected a barrier to protect him and Shmeija.

Barely.

Some of the poison had infiltrated and was absorbed into the twos bodies.

He was faring better as a higher tier existence, but Shmeija was grasping at his own neck with bulging eyes.

Vijak looked at the destruction, the dust still centered at where he had flung his [Rancid Scorching Sphere] blocking his view of Shirota’s remains.

He did not advance, being cautious even when he assumed victory was at hand.

Suddenly, droplets of water stared to rise from the river next to the goblin settlement. They were felt and seen as they surrounded the entire area, falling onto the burning huts and corpse covered ground like rain.

Vijak backed away with a frown.

As the dust cleared, Shirota appeared, still in his stance as he glared ahead.

There was no damage visible on him and he didn’t look to be affected by the poison!

‘This…!’ Vijak thought with a rising anguish.

More droplets poured from the river, rising into the sky and falling like rain. They put out the fires and gave the scene a darker tone.

Strangely, around Shirota, the droplets changed, becoming a mist that roiled around him as he finally fidgeted, looking to be prepared to make his move.

The mist grew thicker until Shirota’s figure was almost invisible under its cover.

Then, Shirota’s voice rang out with a hoarse tone, his movement following a moment after under the gaze of a particularly attentive Bone Boar whose sockets greedily absorbed the scene.

“First River Dance, Condense!”