Chapter 3

"Ah, that's not the correct method to dismantling the goblins, little brother Evan. Why don't you give me a hand here and learn how to dismantle one on your own later?" said the father as they pulled the four goblin corpses closer to the tree.

By borrowing the strength from the tree to keep the corpses upside down, the father and son pair cooperated and gave their throat a slit to let the blood run. They repeated the same thing at the other two corpses before returning to the first pair of goblin corpses.

Bringing down the corpse and proceeding to dismantle them, Evan Young helped with removing what the goblins were wearing first. After removing the protective armor and linen on them, they started by cutting open the corpse from the stomach and removing all the internal organs.

A hole was dug beside the tree for them to throw the innards inside. After that, the father removes the goblin's ribcage from the torso and starts dismembering the body. The body was buried separately but never altogether to avoid evil magic from turning them into undead goblins.

After they're done with the first two corpses, the father and Evan proceed to handle one corpse per person and complete the dismantling about half an hour later. They're left with four marble-size magical stones in hand, along with a stack of goblin ribcage bones.

"Are you curious about what we're going to do with the goblin bones here?" the father asked. He could notice the puzzling expression on Evan Young.

"Yes. I still find it weird to dismantle the goblins and take their ribcage bones away." Evan Young answered honestly.

"Well, their bones were an excellent material to create monster luring powder for the hunters. They might not look like one, but many beasts in the forest love to eat the goblin corpses."

"As for their equipment, we could recycle what we can, along with the clothing. Needless to say, the goblin's weapon was the best as we could get some material from there." the father said as they finished burying the goblins.

All they needed to do now was get a little more rest before continuing with their journey.

"Big brother! Where did you come from? And what is your name?" the young boy asked as they sat around the bonfire to keep themselves warm. From close, he looked like a fourteen to fifteen years old brat. But it seems that the people here matured early as he was already proficient with dismantling the goblins with his father, although he still lacks strength.

On the contrary, Evan felt he was more unusual as he had seemed to be much stronger than where he's from. There's also a surge of indescribable feeling coursing inside his body, like the second kind of energy is in his body.

"My name is Evan Young. Honestly, I'm not sure how close is my place to here. I might be lost, I think?" he used the chance they're resting to introduce himself properly. At the same time, it is also better for him to start learning about this world before something more dangerous happens as he travels.

"Young? What a unique last name. Big brother should be a noble from some big cities, I think?" said the youngster about fourteen to fifteen years old.

"My name is Elric, and this is my father, Eins. Both of us came from the Fang-Boar Village, about an hour from here." Elric's friendliness made Evan feel much more comfortable. It seems this youngster was quite good at breaking the ice between people.

Perhaps this was a trait that all youngsters had in them.

"Well, shall we get on our way, young brother? There should be still some food left if we get back to the village on time. After that, let's get proper rest before showing you the map we have in our house. I'm sure you'll find your way from looking at it." Eins said.

His words weren't too forceful, but there's a hint of "we should get going" impression coming from his words.

As for Evan Young, there's nothing for him to complain about getting a local's help to navigate his journey. Furthermore, he had to look for a way for him to return to earth.

He knew that there must be a way home. But before he found it, he had to find the clues.

Thanks to the grace of the moonlight, the road was still visible as they made their way toward the Fang-Boar Village. Although he doesn't seem like one, Elric was pretty used to the darkness to the point he could navigate his way perfectly.

There would be no problem for him to move around at all, even without Elric and Eins' warning as they went on their way.

Taking advantage of Elric's talkativeness and friendliness also allowed Evan to understand why the village was called this way. He was told that the settlement was named this way because they're located near the monster's nest.

From what Elric told him, the village's main tribute was the Fang-Boar, known for their delicate taste.

"Are you a soldier, big brother Evan?" Elric's suddenly asked him something he had not expected out of the blue.

"I'm not." Evan Young smiled without talking too much about it. But after giving it a thought, he continued.

"Is a goblin hard to kill?" Evan Young asked. In fact, his heart was still beating rapidly every time the scene replayed itself in his mind. While this is not his first time taking a life, it was limited to food like chicken, duck, fish, and lobsters.

Killing two goblins in less than ten minutes was his first right after stepping into this world. But to his surprise, the bad taste that left lingering on him wasn't as bad as he thought.

Evan Young thought he would have a sense of guilt in him after dismantling the corpses and burying them, but he found out he didn't have that post-traumatic syndrome at all.

"Well, trying to kill one goblin is easy, but not in a group of four. I might not look like one, but I served the lord of this land while I was younger. Your skill could be easily compared to a veteran soldier if you were trying to compete." said Eins.

"But honestly, this is my first time seeing someone coming out from the Rook Hill Forest without any equipment on him," Eins added.

"Rook Hill Forest?" Evan Young turned his head back at the forest.