Chapter 22
Have I been spotted?
I thought so for an instant, but apparently not.
The lookout goblin was looking outside and screaming.
...What is it?
There were several goblins outside.
...Crap, did they have companions?
Momo and I heightened our vigilance.
"Giiiiii!! Gii! Gigiiii!"
But the lookout goblin kept threatening those outside, and even threw things at them.
...They aren't its companions?
Could goblins have packs or groups, too?
Come to think of it, of course they would.
Humans and animals form groups and get into fights, too.
There was no reason goblins would be any different.
So goblins aren't one united whole, either.
"Giiii! Gya-gya-gya!!"
The lookout goblin kept roaring, but the goblins outside still showed no sign of leaving.
Perhaps its patience had run out, because the hobgoblin that had been biting into an apple stood up.
It lumbered to the entrance and let out a loud roar.
"Gigyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!"
For an instant, I braced myself for a shockwave like the High Orc's, but that worry proved unfounded.
The hobgoblin seemed to have really 'just shouted.'
So it didn't have a 'Shout Skill' like that High Orc.
...That was convenient.
After the hobgoblin shouted, the goblins outside reluctantly left.
The lookout goblin repeatedly bowed to the hobgoblin.
There was a clear social hierarchy here... Wait, no, that's not the point!
Why was I standing around watching all this so casually?
This was our chance!
The three goblins and the hobgoblin had split up!
"Momo!"
"...Woof!"
Momo and I exchanged a signal and sprang into action.
"Store!"
First, I stored the 'display shelves' in front of and behind my hiding place in my Item Box.
I'd already confirmed that even things like these could be stored in it.
The items on the shelves scattered through the air and clattered across the floor.
So this was what happened when I tried to store only the 'shelves.'
"Gii!?"
"Gigi!?"
The goblins cried out at the sudden noise, all of them turning to look this way.
Then, when they saw me—a human—the goblins were even more shocked.
From their perspective, a shelf had suddenly vanished and I had appeared.
Even the hobgoblin looked stunned, its face slack with surprise.
Good. Stay frozen in shock just like that!
I immediately retrieved the 'display shelves.'
I used them as a 'wall' to separate the hobgoblin from the goblins.
In a confined area, the Item Box's advantage was that I could use it to create a battlefield favorable to me.
It only lasted a few seconds, but the goblins were now completely cut off from one another.
Now to finish this in one go!
"Momo! I'll leave that side to you!"
"Woof!"
Momo and I split up.
I headed toward the goblins clustered in the produce section,
while Momo dashed toward the goblin acting as lookout.
With a fluid motion, I drew a kitchen knife and drove it into the goblin in front of me.
The goblin couldn't even react to my speed, now that it had reached triple digits.
"Gii...!?"
It fell.
I didn't have time to check whether it was alive or dead.
Two left...
I took out a 'washing machine' and a 'refrigerator' and positioned them above the goblins.
The two goblins were crushed beneath the appliances before they had time to dodge.
I'd already confirmed in my first battle that this was enough to immobilize ordinary goblins.
That sealed their movements.
Now, all that remained was—
"―――Gigyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
In an instant, the hobgoblin burst through the display shelves and appeared.
It no longer wore the foolish expression it had moments ago.
Its face was that of a monster enraged at having its territory invaded.
"Sorry, but―――I'm not planning to face you head-on!"
I threw the 'thing' I'd taken out of my Item Box at the hobgoblin.
Naturally, the hobgoblin swatted it aside with one hand and tried to dodge.
But at that instant, the 'thing' burst with a sharp pop!
Along with its distinctive smell, the liquid inside splattered toward the hobgoblin's face.
The hobgoblin grimaced for an instant, then immediately tried to wipe it off.
But―――
"―――Aa?~~~~!!? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!??"
At that moment, the hobgoblin let out a scream that could scarcely be called a voice.
Groaning in agony, it covered its face.
That's called a 'water balloon.'
It was filled with Tabasco.
I'd made it while discussing our plans with Momo after lunch.
Unlike water, putting several bottles' worth of Tabasco into it had been difficult, but perhaps thanks to my increased 'Dexterity,' I'd managed to make it just as I'd imagined.
It was my masterpiece. Did you like it?
"~~~~!! Gyaaaa! Gyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
Perhaps because of the pain, the hobgoblin repeatedly tried to wipe off the Tabasco, but that only made things worse.
Getting Tabasco in your eyes really burns.
"Sorry, but I'm not going to hold back...!"
The hobgoblin groaned while clutching its face, but it didn't approach recklessly.
Instead, I produced a 'vending machine' above its head.
I'd borrowed it while walking through the city.
Ever since I saw a bartender-like man throw one in a certain light novel, I'd been thinking about it.
A vending machine's purpose wasn't just to quench people's thirst.
That's right. A vending machine was a weapon for throwing at people.
I positioned it so that one of its corners would hit the crown of its head―――then released it.
There was a dull thud.
Struck on the head by the vending machine, the hobgoblin collapsed onto the floor.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
The hobgoblin screamed.
Half its head was crushed. ...Gross. But it wasn't dead yet.
"...One more time."
Suppressing the nausea rising in my throat, I stored the vending machine.
Just as I was about to release it again, the hobgoblin tried to get up.
"Agah... Giiii―――!!?"
But its four limbs were restrained by 'Shadow.'
"Nice one, Momo."
Looking over, I saw that Momo had already defeated the lookout goblin.
Momo approached me, and 'Shadow' steadily tightened its hold.
It couldn't dodge anymore.
The hobgoblin desperately tried to resist, but half its head was already crushed.
It probably couldn't muster much strength.
I took out the 'vending machine' above the hobgoblin's head again.
Squish, squish.
After repeating the process twice, the hobgoblin finally died.
A blue magic stone rolled to my feet.
The rest was just cleanup.
Momo and I finished off the remaining goblins whose movements we'd restrained.
≪You acquired experience points≫
≪You have reached the required amount of experience≫
≪Your Lv. has increased from 6 to 7≫
A heavenly voice announced my level-up.
Yes, yes, yes...!
I did it! I did it!
"We did it... We won, Momo! We won!"
"Woof!"
Seven goblins and one higher-ranking hobgoblin.
Considering my record so far, the haul was more than enough.
It was nice to savor victory, but first I should allocate my points.
Besides, I wanted to store the food here, too.
"Momo. Let's move farther inside for now."
"Woof!"
And so, the battle at the co-op ended in great success.
But I was too caught up in the excitement to notice.
That battle just now...
―――there had been a 'watcher.'
That person was on the rooftop of an apartment building about a hundred meters from the co-op.
"Amazing... To beat that many..."
Her eye, peering through the scope, had remained fixed on the battle at the co-op the entire time.
Unfortunately, parts of it had been hidden from view, but she had clearly seen the Shiba Inu instantly kill goblins using 'Shadow,' and the man crush a higher-ranking goblin to death with a vending machine.
"He's definitely someone with a level... And he has a rare Skill, too."
But more noteworthy of all was what happened before the battle began.
That man had noticed her 'gaze.'
No, perhaps he had only sensed something out of place, but even being able to sense that from this distance was astonishing.
Remembering the look he had given her then, she shuddered.
But the trembling wasn't caused by fear.
It was a tremor of joy.
"There was someone else like that besides me..."
―――Someone who actively hunts monsters.
She murmured that, then left.
Carrying a huge rifle on her shoulder, nearly as long as she was tall.