Goblin Heavy Dependence

Chapter 218 Thorns and Beasts, Purification and Request
I dare not recall the scene at "Maple Rest Village" that night.

The mangled corpses and collapsed houses, the scarlet blood pooling on the ground like maple syrup.

"Did I do this?" I asked myself this question over and over again.

The bits of flesh between the fingers, and the nauseating yet deliciously sweet richness of blood in the mouth, already provide the answer.

I became a monster.

……

Just like the maple forest on the hill behind the village, when you go in it is still early morning and the sun has already set.

Days in the forest always pass quickly.

I roughly know what's happening to me.

Therefore, after that night, she rarely had contact with others.

They wandered the depths of the mountains and forests all day, only occasionally going to the nearby town at midday when the sun was at its brightest to exchange for necessary supplies with the residents.

But it never lasts long.

The whispers echoing in my ears, along with the increasingly frenzied roars in my heart, devoured my consciousness on those moonlit nights.

Even if you escape to the farthest place.

When I woke up, I was still covered in blood.

There were always a few corpses lying in front of him, more or less.

I gradually got used to it.

They no longer even resisted the beast that lingered in the depths of their inner shadows.

The time spent on all fours is getting longer, and the days spent walking on two legs are getting shorter.

My memories of being human are becoming increasingly blurred; I've even forgotten my own name.

Many times, it seems that he really is just a cold, cruel beast.

Until that day, I met a powerful adventurer.

He seemed to see the blood between my claws, and that light, more intense than the sunlight, also severely injured me.

His consciousness became even more blurred, and he had no idea where he had escaped to.

And when I lay under the tree, thinking that I was going to die like this.

Renee appeared.

To this day, I still remember how she looked in my eyes at that moment.

The dazzling sunlight shone from behind her, as if draping her in a layer of soft holy light, flowing through her golden hair, making even her features appear incredibly sacred.

She wore a pure white robe, with a thorn necklace around her neck that went deep into her collar, only half of it visible. The emerald green light emanating from her fair hands, full of vitality, was so warm and captivating.

My injuries were thus healed.

It seemed to sense the unnaturalness in my expression, and the anxiety and pain in my heart.

Before parting, Renee gave me a small clump of wild mint that she had picked nearby.

She said, "Mint grows in inconspicuous corners, yet it has a refreshing fragrance that dispels filth and brings tranquility."

“The grace bestowed by God is sometimes like this patch of mint, small yet resilient, offering comfort when needed.”

"Resilient vitality, small acts of kindness, purification and hope."

I don't know why, even though I've forgotten my own name and my human memories are as blurry as clouds in the sky, I still remember her words.

And that patch of mint, with its cool and refreshing fragrance, seemed to truly calm my heart.

I dare not approach the town where Renee lives.

I was worried that what had happened in MapleBreath Village would be repeated in this small town.

But the inexplicable feelings surging within me still make me unable to stop myself from secretly hiding in a dimly lit alley during the most stable time of the month, just to catch a glimpse of her from afar.

Watch her treat the wounds on the knees of naughty children, dispel the pain of her pale wife in her husband's arms, and recite eulogies at the funerals of deceased elderly people.

Unlike herself, Renee was the most popular person in the whole town.

I thought life would just continue like this until one day I finally mustered up the courage, or perhaps I found a way to suppress the beast within me.

But even I know that with my hands stained with blood and burdened with sin, I don't deserve such a peaceful life.

Renee left, along with two unfamiliar adventurers.

I am genuinely happy that she has found her own path, and I sincerely wish her continued success on her adventurer's journey.

But my keen senses, like those of a wild beast, allowed me to detect the somber, putrid stench emanating from the two adventurers.

An unease welled up inside me, so I secretly followed them.

What happened next was the first time I felt grateful for possessing the power of a beast.

I rescued Renee's body from those two adventurers.

She wasn't afraid of my beast-like body, nor did she show any disgust in her eyes.

She was too badly injured to speak, but before she died, she clutched the necklace that had always been hidden deep under her collar and handed it to me.

The necklace was beautiful, woven from thorns, with a crystal that shone with emerald light hanging at the bottom, reflecting on Renee's pale face.

Those two adventurers were very strong; even in my beast form, I was no match for them.

They kept running away.

Perhaps it was the anger in my heart, the desire for revenge and power, that made me find my mind gradually clearing.

The primal roar within, and the whispers echoing in his ears, seemed to melt away in the mane that trembled as he ran.

Unexplained knowledge surged from my mind as if by instinct, and I began to be able to control the beast deep within me, and comprehend the ability to manipulate thorns and summon beasts.

But these alone were far from enough for those two experienced adventurers.

The fragile thorns could not stop the bluish-gray stone spear that tore through the air, and the ordinary wild beasts in the forest had no chance to resist the two poisoned blades.

Perhaps it was a stroke of luck.

Several months later, I suddenly arrived in an area with extremely high concentrations of magical particles, where the beasts inhabiting the area were far stronger than those in other places.

The fog that filled the air made me realize that this was the extremely dangerous monster-infested area that I often heard about from the villagers when I was a child—the "Misty Forest".

I stayed in the forest for a while, driving away some adventurers I encountered, and through repeated attempts, I confirmed that my abilities were still effective here.

This is the perfect place to settle everything and bring everything to an end.

These two people are no match for the powerful monsters in the forest.

But how can we get these two shrewd and cunning adventurers to risk their lives to venture deep into the forest, and not retreat even when faced with waves of monsters, so as to create conditions for our revenge?

I made a crazy decision.

I plan to join their team as a squad member and, step by step, lure these two people into the trap.

Only when I am in the group will the beasts in the forest launch an attack on the two of us.

Of course, before that, I need a name, a new one, to replace the one that has been forgotten as my memory has faded.

"Mint."

"My name is 'Mint'."

I said this to the two people in front of me.

……

The plan is progressing smoothly.

The two adventurers didn't suspect my identity, or rather, my disguise as a "new adventurer" made them not care about my background—it all came down to the same thing in the end.

The only unexpected factor was the black-haired youth who had also joined the team halfway through and was known as "Gray Sword" by the townspeople.

In the mouths of the two, they were referring to a "newcomer" who had just recently obtained a professional level.

I didn't pay much attention to it at first. After all, if he was just a novice professional, dealing with those dangerous monsters in the forest would only be a matter of taking a bite or two more.

Until a few days ago, when I faced that pack of Temple Night Wolves.

That iron-gray sword light gave me a sense of danger far greater than that of the two people combined.

The plan changed. I will use this man to kill those two adventurers.

Even if it costs far more than before.

...I succeeded.

An unexpected owl bear, disrupting the formation, seemed to make the two adventurers doubt Gray Sword.

And just a little bit of accelerant is enough to ignite the extremely tense atmosphere in the team.

As expected, the two attacked the gray sword in response to the magical items on my "corpse".

……

……

"Tap, tap."

The soft sound of footsteps, crunching on fallen leaves, came from the shadows of the dense forest ahead.

A petite and frail figure gradually emerged from the depths of darkness.

His short, dark brown hair, tinged with green, swayed gently with the rise and fall of his body, and his plain robe, stained with blood, hung on the ground.

The immense force of the owl-bear's blow caused his chest to cave in, but the surface was covered with a layer of emerald green light, and his injury healed rapidly.

He was no longer as weak as before, nor did he stagger as one would after a serious injury.

Mint's steps were incredibly steady, even with a touch of lightness.

He doesn't seem like a fragile spellcaster who has suffered serious injuries at all.

Bathed in the moonlight overhead, her cheeks remained pale, but all the expressions that had been used to conceal her true feelings had vanished.

Only an indescribable, silent calm remained.

Those eyes, like those of a wild beast, gleaming slightly in the night, passed over Xia Nan, over the corpses on the field, and finally settled on the emerald light beside the tree trunk in the center of the arena.

Take a step forward.

"Tick."

Thick, scarlet drops of blood dripped from the iron-gray sword tip, splashing into shimmering blood flowers on the meadow.

With his dark eyes fixed on the thin figure walking slowly past, Xia Nan remained still.

He could sense that the other party's intentions were not good.

Having already sensed that Mint was acting strangely, she wasn't too surprised by the other party's current actions, which seemed like "the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind."

This is reality, not a scene from an anime or game. Given his personality, once he determines friend from foe, he would never give the other party even a second's pause to explain their intentions.

The reason I haven't made a move yet is that I'm just standing there watching the other person walk by.

It was because he sensed the subtle movements coming from beneath the ground.

Like the extending roots of a tree, a complex and intricate network of thorns is creeping and spreading through the mud around him.

He feared that if he took even a single step, the thorns would burst forth from the ground and pounce on him.

The number and intensity of the thorns perceived would naturally no longer be as overwhelming as before, where even a wild boar couldn't stop them.

At the same time, around the open space on the field, pairs of cruel and violent beastly eyes emerged from the shadows at the edge, casting their bloodthirsty gazes upon him.

The herd of beasts arrived silently.

At the very center of my vision was that seemingly thin and frail figure.

Xia Nan could clearly sense an invisible force silently roaring and twisting beneath his skin.

The shadow, elongated by the moonlight, grew into an uneasy and fearful beastly figure, wildly brandishing its ferocious claws in another space.

"Troublesome, very troublesome."

His gaze swept over the corpses on the ground.

Xia Nan secretly began to consider the possibility of quickly collecting the spoils along the way and then retreating.

But it was as if they sensed what he was thinking.

Suddenly, a calm female voice came from beside me.

"Please don't run away." Mint said softly without turning her head. "I've seen you use that movement-type combat skill before. Please believe me, its effect is much weaker now than during the day."

"The forest at night is the domain of wild beasts."

She walked to the oak tree in the center of the clearing.

Shila-

A blurry light suddenly flashed across the surface of the beast-like corpse that had been slumped against the tree trunk.

The dark mane and the bloody wounds vanished in the blink of an eye, as if from a fantasy.

All that remained was a crudely made body woven from thorns.

"Thank you... for helping me finish it."

Mint bent down, her fair hand reaching towards the thorny imposter beside the tree trunk.

"But I cannot let you leave."

With a gentle pinch and tug, the emerald green light, radiating a rich life force, was removed from the neck of the dummy amidst the crumbling thorny vines.

"Please do me one last favor."

Like a young girl applying makeup in front of the mirror before leaving home in the morning, Mint held the emerald light in her hand and gently raised it to her ear.

The teardrop-shaped light green earring once again hung below her left earlobe.

The verdant light rippled and shimmered in the air.

She looked at Xia Nan in front of her, her face beaming with a radiant smile she had never shown since they met.

"Now... let's go."

The girl spread her arms, her short, dark brown hair moving without any wind.

"End this."

boom--

Thick, tough skin was pushed up by muscles that swelled like balloons, the plain robe was instantly torn apart, and the dark mane swayed wildly like ink.

The primal instincts suppressed for hundreds of days and nights surged forth like a flood from the depths of his heart when the hatred finally came to an end.

The dam built by will collapsed, and human reason was instantly swallowed up.

Thorns and wild beasts, anger and hatred.

With no more reason to persevere, Mint chose to embrace her animalistic instincts.

A full moon overhead,

Before him lay the corpse of his enemy.

On the thorny ground, under the watchful eyes of countless wild beasts.

There was no way to resist; even the last shred of human consciousness was torn apart by the beast within.

She instinctively completed the final step of the beast transformation ritual.

boom--

Dust flew everywhere!

The brown thorns, like waves surging from the mud, intertwined and woven together, carrying plant sap and the earthy smell, swept towards Xia Nan.

Amidst frenzied roars, one after another ferocious beast charged into the arena, their sharp teeth and claws gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

Gazing at the twisted, swollen, and ferocious figure ahead.

Xia Nan felt completely bewildered.

"Thank you? Why are you thanking me?"

"Help? Do I have the right to refuse?"

(End of this chapter)