—A/N—

This story is a work of fiction, and has nothing to do with real life event, nor does it have anything to do with the original storyline.

—End—

Five years after she became an adventurer, Goblin slayer is now a silver rank. There are 10 ranks for an adventurer, from porcelain followed by obsidian, steel, sapphire, emerald, ruby, bronze, silver, gold, and then finally, platinum. Although there are 10 ranks, silver is the highest rank normally achieved by people, while gold and platinum ranks are classified as heroes. And Goblin slayer spends her five years time to slay goblins, with a myriads of Methods. She was now covered head to toe in armor, she's wielding a short sword and a small shield in her left hand. From the looks alone, no-one can tell whether she's male, female, young, old, human, or something else. From outside she just looks like a living armor.

Today, Goblin slayer made her way to the guild to look for a goblin subjugation quest. Ignoring the quest board, where all requests from clients are posted, Goblin slayer made her way to the receptionist. The receptionist girl notices goblin slayer and immediately called out to her.

"Ah! Goblin slayer, just in time!"

"What's wrong. Is it goblins?"

Goblin slayer asked as this interaction implies that something is wrong. Her voice is muffled by her helmet, which made it more ambiguous about her identity.

"Well, it seems that a few moments ago a party of rookie adventurers took a goblin subjugation quest. I want your opinions on it"

"How's the party composition?"

"It's a well balanced party with a swordsman, a fighter, a spell caster, and a priestess who just joined the guild"

"Hmm, can I look at the quest paper?"

"Here you go"

As goblin slayer read through the paper, she immediately made her judgement.

"The goblins are in a cave. Which means that there's quite a number of them. If they're rookies who haven't took a goblin quest before, then there's a chance that they'll fall for the goblin's traps. There's also a chance that a wanderer came as a guard"

"So...that means—"

"I'll go"

Goblin slayer stated this and immediately went out of the guild.

—XXXXX—

After she arrived at her designated location, goblin slayer begins inspecting her equipments. She then lights a fire on her torch, and then proceeds inside carefully. After walking for a few minutes, she heard the sound of someone, but she merely proceeds in the same pace with caution. As she got closer to the identity of the voice, she saw two goblins facing their backs towards her. And facing the goblins are two adventurers. One was a girl who is lying down unmoving, and another was a priestess who is currently crouching down being scared. Without recklessly approaching the goblins to save the girl, goblin slayer simply walks with the same pace, only she made her footsteps a little louder to attracts the goblin's attention.

It worked, and the goblin turned their attention away from the priestess and onto goblin slayer. The goblin who's equipped with a bow tried to shoot an arrow thinking that goblin slayer is another easy prey. As the arrow flew in her direction, goblin slayer simply strike it down with her sword.

Vexed at it's failed attempt, the goblin archer made a dash at goblin slayer with a dagger. As the goblin approaches, goblin slayer simply dodges it to the right, as if the goblin is not allowed to touch her, she then proceeds to slam her shield into the goblin. As the goblin started to stagger, goblin slayer then slams the goblin's head with her torch. She let's the hot, burning stick stayed in the goblin's head for a few seconds as it boils the goblin's insides. After the goblin died, goblin slayer simply stated this.

"That's one"

She then proceeds to approach the other goblin who is currently stunned. The goblin then tried to make an escape, but it's way of escape is currently being blocked by the priestess's presence. As it contemplated on a way to bypass her, the goblin collapsed to the ground with a sword protruding from it's head, with blood gushing out of it.

"That's two"

The identity of the sword was goblin slayer, as she threw it aiming at the goblin. Then she proceeds to approach the corpse. As goblin slayer pulled back her sword, the priestess look up at her and ask in a meek voice.

"W-who are you?"

"...Goblin slayer"

Goblin slayer stated as she looks at the priestess's condition. She was bleeding as an arrow is currently lodged in her shoulder. Goblin slayer then looks at the other girl's condition. She was lying down on the ground almost completely naked, she had a stab wound on her stomach, possibly poisoned by the goblin's weapon.

First, goblin slayer approaches the priestess, and the girl notices that goblin slayer is a silver ranked adventurer.

"Hold your tongue, this is going to hurt"

"Wha—? Ngnnnnnnngh!!"

"It's not poisoned. You're lucky"

Goblin slayer stated as she pulled out the arrow from her shoulder. The priestess barely managed to hold her tongue so that she wouldn't accidentally bite on it. Goblin slayer then proceeds to give the priestess a bottle of liquid. The priestess looks at the bottle in bewilderment, and goblin slayer explains.

"Drink it. It's a healing potion"

"T-then, give it to her!"

The priestess stated as she's worried about her friend's survival. Goblin slayer simply stated this.

"No. Give it up. It's too late for her"

"H-huh? Why?"

"She's been poisoned. I have an antidote, but the poison already spreads to her entire body"

Goblin slayer said as she approaches the collapsed girl, who is a spell caster. The spell caster said thus in a meek voice.

"...k...kill...m...me..."

"Okay"

"W-wait! There's still—"

Before the priestess finished, goblin slayer pulled out a knife and lodged it in her neck, ending her suffering. The priestess simply stared in disbelief.

"W-why?"

"It's too late to save her. You'll only made her suffer more. Now drink"

The priestess then swallowed the potion as if she was swallowing the current situation into her system. After she's finished, goblin slayer begin asking a serious of questions, which the priestess tried answering.

"Is one of your party member a girl?"

"...yes"

"Then they're taking her further inside. Did you see any big ones?"

"Yes, only one"

"Then that is a hob"

After asking her questions, goblin slayer begins preparing by checking her equipments again, it doesn't kill to be cautious.

"I'm going to slay some goblins. What are you going to do?"

"...I—I'm going"

"I see"

After that, goblin slayer begins dissecting the body of the goblin, making the priestess's face in bewilderment. She then proceeds to wipe the blood and internal organs to a cloth.

"Here. We need to mask your scent"

"H-huh!? Y-you don't mean!?"

"They have a sensitive sense of smell. Especially towards women and children"

"B-but—"

Before she could finish, the priestess is already soaked in the smell of goblins. Goblin slayer is already used to it, knowing that her smell prevents any surprise atack.

Then with the priestess joining her, they both went further into the cave.

—XXXXX—

As they traveled for a few minutes, they reached a place where there's a lot of blood, probably from a result of a battle. As goblin slayer looks around the surroundings, she saw a two-handed long sword, a severed arm, torn clothes, a totem at one corner of the cave, and ten goblin corpses.

The priestess immediately began praying, it shows that this is where her party members died. After she was done goblin slayer started.

"That's twelve. Were you attacked from behind?"

"H-huh? Yes, but—"

"There was a side tunnel from where you came from"

Goblin slayer said this as she turns around and pointed her torch revealing a side tunnel.

"B-but. That wasn't there before—"

"A common mistake, you were too busy looking at that"

Goblin slayer stated as she pointed at the totem. The totem is simply made from woods, bones, and some cloth. They were made by goblins.

"T-that?"

"It's a totem. Which means that there's a shaman within the horde. And you were too distracted by it to notice anything around you"

As the priestess realized that her party was walking right into a trap, she begins to start tearing up but managed to hold it in.

Goblin slayer immediately start lighting up another torch, and throw her old one to the depth of the side tunnel. As the torch light the darkness, a shadow of a short humanoid emerges from within. As soon as the shadow appears, goblin slayer threw a knife at the neck of the figure, which is a goblin, and ending it with her sword.

"That's thirteen"

"Can you see in the dark?"

"No. I've had practice, but they can so build a fire. Darkness is our enemy"

Goblin slayer said this as she reminiscences

On her days being an adventurer. After that she drags the corpse away and picked up her sword back as well as the long sword that was originally belonged to the rookie adventurer, and strap it in her belt.

"It's too long to use in a cave"

While it's true that the sword is long, unless you use it properly, the sword will hit nothing but the walls of the cave.

After that she immediately prepares a trap, a rope that stretches from one edge of the wall to another, making anyone that walks in on it trip. As the priestess was curious about the trap, goblin slayer stated.

"It's a trap. Don't forget it"

"Yes, sir"

As they proceed further, the cave begins to get narrower. Before they proceed further goblin slayer commands.

"Stop here. Use holy light. Then be ready to retreat"

"Y-yes, sir"

"Alright"

After that the priestess begins her chanting and unleashed a bright light. Meanwhile goblin slayer started sprinting towards the interior revealing eight goblins including one hobgoblin and one goblin shaman. Goblin slayer then threw her short sword towards the goblin shaman before it manages to cast a spell, which pierced it's shoulder. Goblin slayer then turns around and retreats.

"Retreat!"

"Y-yes sir!"

As the both of them ran back leading the horde of goblins led by a hobgoblin towards the trap. After they pass the trap, while not tripping over it, goblin slayer spoke another command while unsheathing the long sword.

"Use another holy light"

"Yes!"

As the priestess unleashed another bright light, it blinded the goblins which has night vision. Then the hobgoblin, which is in front, trip over the rope, and goblin slayer waste no time and lunges the sword deep into it's head, and break it's neck while at it. She then poured liquids of gasoline on it's corpse and threw it at the passageway. She then threw her torch and the body burns along with the goblins that catch up with it.

"That's sixteen"

Goblin slayer then grabs an axe that were left behind by the third goblin and prepares for an ambush. As the goblins came one by one, goblin slayer made no effort to kill them all.

"That's twenty-one"

After she finished them all, goblin slayer picked up a club from a goblin, and proceeds back into the side tunnel along with the priestess. Inside the large space, there were many females all bruised and unclothed. It's apparent that they are traumatized. While goblin slayer ignores them, she approaches the goblin shaman, which it immediately started to get up in an attempt to strike her in a surprise attack. Goblin slayer, unfazed, simply slams her club into the goblin's skull, shattering it.

"That's twenty-two"

After goblin slayer finished off the last goblin, the priestess reach out towards her friend, the rookie fighter, in an attempt to soothe her. Meanwhile goblin slayer stare at the throne of the goblin shaman, that's made out of bones, and kicks it away revealing a hole that's blocked by a wooden plank.

"W-What's that?"

"You'll see"

As goblin slayer stated this, she then remove the plank revealing five goblin children. Without remorse, goblin slayer approaches the beings to slay them. Sensing what she was about to do, priestess exclaimed.

"Do you have to kill them?"

"Of course. They multiply quickly"

"Even though they might be good goblins"

"Maybe. But I doubt it. The only good ones are the ones that didn't come out of women"

Goblin slayer said this with a hint of a grudge. One can only imagine how her life would have been. She was lucky that she wasn't old enough to have children when it happened. The thought of that thing coming out of her makes her sick. And with every swing filled with vengeance, she killed all the goblins in the cave. And just like a grim reaper counting it's kill-streak, goblin slayer stated—

"That's twenty-seven"