Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 181 True Name
"Hey!"

"Get away! Don't come any closer!"

This was Xia Nan's first reaction.

In the midst of a fierce battle, the thought that had been on his mind just a second before was about what to do next.

The tall, thin figure that suddenly approached from the sidelines made him instinctively assume it was a resident of the nearby slums, and he called out a warning.

Although not to the exaggerated extent of the barbarian Fergán, whose battle's aftershocks alone destroyed nearly half of Calanfort.

But it was still a professional-level battle. If an ordinary person got involved and accidentally got grazed by something, losing an arm or a leg would be considered lucky.

Even a minor injury, if contracted with bestiality, would be no different from death for these impoverished people who struggle to even fill their stomachs.

However, perhaps he was distracted by the roars of the animals on the field and didn't hear them; or perhaps he was simply a drunkard.

The figure approached slowly and unsteadily, its steps faltering but never faltering.

As if targeting Xia Nan's position, it slowly approached, step by step.

His brows furrowed unconsciously.

They had already decided to let the other party fend for themselves.

Xia Nan appeared exceptionally relaxed during the battle, perhaps due to her [Fang Hunt] and [Gravity Control].

But if he were to add a burden to the mix... he couldn't guarantee he could protect the bear from its claws.

Since a warning has already been given, if the other party insists on ignoring it, then he can only...

My thoughts suddenly paused.

The soft, bright moonlight forced its way into the narrow corner where the dilapidated buildings on both sides met.

The elf's pale face, shrouded in shadow, became clear for a fleeting moment amidst the swaying.

The feeling of déjà vu intensified, and fragmented images surfaced in my mind.

At this moment, he seemed to have returned to the Adventurers' Guild a few months ago, shortly after the start of the Hunting Day.

Behind them came the urging voices of "Green Blood" Adeline and her teammate Abi, while ahead came the high-level adventurer team descending from the second floor of the association.

A refined-looking blue-robed mage, a savage and untamed orc, a silent and resolute heavy-armored warrior, and the one bringing up the rear of the procession…

A tall male elf with long golden hair.

"It's him!?"

Xia Nan wondered to himself.

Having already achieved a professional level, one's perception abilities have been significantly enhanced, allowing them to recognize that the other party is likely a high-level professional.

But at this point in time, in this location...

Was it sent by the association to support us?
Or was it just a coincidence?

Xia Nan's gaze swept over him, and even his usually calm demeanor, which had remained unchanged since the start of the battle, was stirred by a slight ripple.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the field.

Buck has completely transformed into a beast, changing from a robust human into a four-legged brown bear larger than an average bungalow.

They wouldn't care about the implications.

The intense pain from the blade piercing his back, coupled with the increasingly strong stench of blood in the air, nearly drove Buck, whose human reason had long been consumed by bestial instincts, into a state of frenzy.

In a pair of bloodshot, scarlet eyes, there was the bloodlust and ferocity unique to an enraged beast.

The faint yet clear footsteps coming from the edge of the arena acted like an invisible fuse, completely igniting the pent-up anger in his heart.

Roar--

He also ignored Xia Nan, who was standing on the opposite side, remaining vigilant.

With its mane throbbing and its sturdy body resembling a small tank, it charged toward the golden-haired elf amidst a roar.

Xia Nan's mind raced as he pondered.

Under normal circumstances, I could easily handle such a reckless beast, even one that I had just acquired a professional rank.

As a high-level professional, the blonde elf probably wouldn't find it too prickly.

Taking down the opponent would probably only take a few rounds.

But now, for reasons unknown, this advanced professional's condition is clearly not right.

He could, of course, do nothing and just watch the two sides fight.

If the elf still retains some fighting strength, it would be best to take down Buck directly, thus saving himself the risk of contracting the beastification disease and engaging in close combat with him.

But if the other side doesn't currently have the ability to deal with the brown bear, then he himself...

As his thoughts wandered, Xia Nan's gaze suddenly stopped.

Not far ahead, a huge brown bear was seen lunging toward the edge of the field.

I don't know when, but I've stopped in my tracks.

There’s more to it than that.

Like a video frame suddenly paused, time and space seem to freeze at this moment.

The brown bear that Buck had transformed into still maintained its roaring and lunging posture.

The menacing mouth, covered with jagged, sharp teeth, was wide open, saliva dripping from the surface of the teeth, and a rough, long tongue extended and curled, revealing even the writhing throat deeper inside.

But the frenzied roar that should have burst forth from its mouth, causing eardrum pain, was nowhere to be heard.

Instead, the brown bear's body appears frozen in mid-air, its limbs off the ground, pouncing as if suspended in mid-air.

The reason for his current state was simply a casual glance from those unfocused, emerald-green eyes as his long golden hair swayed.

Seeing this, Xia Nan breathed a sigh of relief.

Clearly, the blonde elf who suddenly appeared at the edge of the field, even though she looked a bit strange, still possessed the combat abilities of a high-level professional.

An ordinary beast-like infected person like Buck could not possibly be his match.

Guessing that the other person might be a powerful spellcaster, Xia Nan turned around and greeted the golden-haired elf.

Then I realized that, I don't know when it started.

He... also seemed to have lost control of his body.

Like the brown bear hovering in mid-air like a specimen in front of him, his body also froze in place.

"Clap."

The faint, clear sound of footsteps still lingered in my ears.

His fixed gaze meant he could only catch a glimpse of a swaying figure slowly approaching from the corner of his eye.

Shila-

In the air, which seemed to have vanished even with the evening breeze, a strange sound suddenly rang out—a sound he had never heard before, yet which sent chills down his spine.

It was thick, tough skin covered with dense, brownish-brown bristles, and the flesh beneath it was being peeled away inch by inch with a chilling, sluggish sound.

At the very center of the field of vision, Buck, the brown bear frozen in mid-air, suddenly trembled.

Then, like a costume from a past life used to impersonate an animal, the "zipper" was gently pulled open from the jaw to the chest and abdomen, and finally to the buttocks.

A brown bear's pelt was completely peeled off.

It gently floated to the ground.

Fat mixed with blood was drawn out in gusts; muscle fibers turned into thousands of flesh-colored filaments, which were scattered by a mysterious breeze.

Internal organs, eyeballs, tongues... all sorts of organs, reflected in the blood, were neatly piled on the ground.

But in the blink of an eye.

That ferocious brown bear, transformed from a burly adventurer, that has slaughtered many humans.

All that remained was a pale, smooth skeleton.

From beginning to end, he didn't even groan or cry out in pain, nor did he move his eyes once.

It seems to really be just a specimen.

Xia Nan felt a chill run down his spine.

Being held captive in place himself, the horrific ordeal that befell Buck made him unable to stop thinking about it.

Although I haven't felt any pain yet, I wonder if my skin is being peeled off as well.

Fortunately, his frozen body was positioned against the light, and he was still holding his decapitation sword.

A complete reflection under the moonlight, and the fair back of the hand on the hilt of the sword at the edge of the line of sight.

This allowed him to confirm that his body was intact. "Something's wrong! Something's wrong! Something's wrong!"

"This kind of precise control is something that ordinary professionals can't achieve."

Even the "extraordinary," or even the higher "legendary," could not be portrayed in such an exaggerated way in Xia Nan's understanding.

Then I recalled the elf's appearance, as if he had lost his soul, with lifeless eyes and stiff limbs.

I felt a chill creeping up from the bottom of my heart.

"What...what is that!?"

Even this stiff state of losing control of his body is different from anything he has ever encountered before.

It is completely different from "Petrifying Gaze" and is not the jelly-like feeling of being wrapped up like "Human Freeze Spell".

If I had to describe it, it was more like the feeling he had when he first transmigrated to this world and witnessed his dwarf teammate sitting opposite him having his head smashed by a goblin. Then, when faced with a sudden attack from the goblins behind him, he felt a blank in his mind and stood there stunned.

It originates from bodily instincts.

Xia Nan wanted to save himself.

But whether it's [Fang Hunt] or [Fate Coin]...

Without complete control of the body, there is no way to perform any actions.

He could only stand there motionless, listening to the slow footsteps getting closer and closer.

"despair."

Her messy, long golden hair fell across her face, and her dark green eyes reflected the black-haired figure in front of her.

It seemed as if it wasn't used to the way this body moved.

The blonde elf maintained an unusually awkward stance, with her left leg bent, knee turned outward, and ankle on the ground, while her right leg was stretched straight, causing her entire body to tilt to the side.

At the same time, his shoulders were uneven, drooping, and his slender arms looked like two withered branches, hanging limply and swinging irregularly back and forth with his body.

He stood two body lengths in front of Xia Nan.

A pair of dazed eyes stared into Xia Nan's eyes.

still.

It seemed as if it was recognizing something.

Then, he stiffly and slowly raised his left arm.

The deep, bluish-gray hue, the rustic textures that seem to be sculpted by nature, the indistinct outline of the upright human body, the blurry ram's head with its expression unclear, and those two long, curved horns that extend and disappear...

It was only at this moment that Xia Nan finally saw it.

The statue of a goat and deer, which he held tightly, almost embedded in his palm.

And I don't know why.

At a glance, he recognized it as the same statue he had seen in the "Fairy Wind" general store.

"What do you mean?"

Xia Nan was puzzled.

The shopkeeper had already explained the origin of the "Sheep and Deer Statue" clearly: it came from Newme.

These statues, which have recently appeared out of nowhere in various corners of the city, are being sought after by high-ranking officials in Newme due to their exquisite craftsmanship.

He has done some research on this over the past few days.

Back then, I didn't even touch it; I left because of its bizarre, hallucinatory, spirit-devouring experience and the vague description on the attribute panel...

and many more!

As if suddenly remembering something, Xia Nan was startled.

"Could it be because I only recited half of it in my mind..."

Gollum—

A strange sound suddenly came from ahead.

The elf, who had just raised his left hand to reveal the [Sheep-Deer Human Statue] in his palm, remained motionless.

Xia Nan didn't react for a long time.

His throat suddenly bulged, and his dry, pale lips parted slightly.

The air surged, the vocal cords vibrated and closed, and an indescribable sound was exhaled from his mouth.

"boom!"

It seemed that even the physical abilities of highly skilled professionals, far exceeding those of ordinary people, were insufficient to withstand the sound itself.

The elf's neck suddenly exploded!

Blood splattered, carrying fragments of flesh, staining the ground beneath his feet red.

The rotting, bloody flesh inside the neck was exposed, writhing and spasming, and the pale bone vertebrae deep inside could even be faintly seen.

This voice does not belong to any language in this world.

That kind of heavy, slow pronunciation, mainly based on guttural sounds and repetitive syllables, with irregular pauses.

It's like some kind of law, or perhaps a curse from another world.

It contains a strange and indescribable power.

A fine chainmail worth 50 gold coins, made by the "Rockhammer" blacksmith shop. Even the strongest goblin in the entire lair could only leave a shallow scratch on its surface.

Together with the specially made leather armor at its bottom, which served as a second layer of protection, it instantly turned into molten iron, melting and seeping onto the ground.

Strangely, the fragile shirt underneath the armor remained completely unaffected.

The two longswords on his body, the "Death Line" ring on his right index finger, and even the "Fate Coin" hidden inside his shirt were all intact.

It seems to only target the armor itself.

The warm sensation of blood flowing in the ear canal was a sharp, stabbing pain, like being pricked with needles.

Dizziness and buzzing filled the cranial cavity.

Xia Nan was absolutely certain that he had never heard of this language before, neither in his previous life nor in his original body.

But strangely, when the words that had blown off half of the elf's neck reached his ears...

Yet he instinctively understood the meaning of those words.

It's as if some kind of abstract hieroglyphic language allows one to "see" the meaning of a sound through their ears.

That is--

“Recite…His…true name…”

His gaze instantly focused on the wooden carving in front of him, and the attribute panel popped up once again.

……

[Sheep and Deer Portrait]

Type: Statue

grade:/
Introduction:

Like the rings of a tree and the tides, you wouldn't want to know the secrets hidden in those folds.

Remarks:

"Ef'tisuuHai'lot'vhuVurahkia"

……

It was already out of control.

That voice, which did not belong to this world, forcefully drove Xia Nan's body.

He was made to read aloud the "real name" that he had only silently recited half of a few dozen days ago, before stopping on its own, while looking at the notes on the attribute panel.

“Ef'tisuu
Hai'lot'vhu
Vurahkia”

The space suddenly distorted!

The gentle moonlight trembled, casting several layers of blurry, illusory shadows.
Xia Nan's body stood frozen in place, like a reflection in the water.

It suddenly swelled twice.

They disappeared from the scene.

(End of this chapter)