Ch-6: A dance of Death and Bones

Ethan clicked the notification, and the [Missions] tab opened up, displaying a new category underneath the pre-assigned mission.

[NEW MISSION]

{Optional mission}: Reach Level 5 by the end of the night.

{Duration}: 6 hours

{Rewards}: 50 coins

"Well, that's a pleasant surprise," Ethan muttered, a grin spreading across his bony face. This mission was a welcome one because he didn't have to go out of his way to complete it.

He closed the tab, but his eyes were drawn to the [Skills] tab, which was emboldened, making it stand out from the others.

'Maybe it's the new skills that make it pop,' he mused, curiosity piqued. He opened it, and his gaze landed on an unexpected surprise.

In the {Passive Skills} column, a new entry had appeared.

{Swordsmanship/HEMA}: Level 1

You are an initiate in the uses of a sword.

Ethan blinked, the blue flames in his eye sockets flickering with astonishment. Swordsmanship? This meant that he could learn skills on his own and not just through the system!... He wasn't chained to the system for improvement.

He chuckled, the sound eerie in the still night. 'This opens up a whole new world of possibilities. I can actually train and get better on my own terms. Perfect. Looks like I've got even more reasons to push forward tonight…But before that, let's assign the stats.'

Ethan opened his Status Panel, contemplating the best way to use his stats.

[STATUS]

Name: ETHAN BLACKETT

Level: 4 (EXP: 40/1000)

Health (/R per hour): 120/120 (12)

Mana (/R per hour): 110/110 (11)

STAMINA (/R per min): N/A (N/A)

STR: 11

AGI: 20

END: 12

INT: 11

WIS: 16

DEX: 13

CHA: 01

LUC: 10

Ethan scrutinized the panel. 'Health and mana haven't increased even though I'm Level 4 now. So, leveling up doesn't boost those directly. Only stat increases do. At least the level up healed me completely, though. That's something.'

He rubbed his skeletal chin, deep in thought. 'I need to focus on stats that give me a better fighting chance. Physical stats like strength, agility, endurance, and dexterity are key right now. Wisdom might help with perception, and intelligence with reaction time, but those are secondary. Charisma is useless for now, and I can't increase luck.'

He continued, 'I'll aim to get dexterity to 20 to get a new skill, but I need to balance it with strength and endurance. Can't just chase after skills and neglect my overall balance.'

Ethan assigned his stat points carefully. He added 5 points to dexterity, bringing it up to 18. Then, he added 3 points to strength and 2 to endurance, making both of them 14.

'Balancing is crucial,' he mused, feeling the familiar surge of power course through his skeletal frame. 'If I focus too much on one stat, I'll end up with a glaring weakness.'

The exhilarating rush was back, more intense this time. He felt more nimble, his movements even smoother than before. His bones felt sturdier, capable of withstanding more impact. The newfound strength and resilience filled him with a sense of invincibility.

"Alright," he whispered to himself, clenching his skeletal fists. 'Let's put these new stats to good use. Time to get to Level 5 and clear out that goblin nest. . .The night is still young, and there's a lot more to do.'

As Ethan resolved to tackle the goblin nest, his eyes landed on the lifeless body of the Orc. 'Might as well make use of it,' he thought. He stored the Orc's corpse and its massive club in his inventory.

In the inventory, new pixel images appeared: an Orc head with Xs for eyes and a club with a white background. Ethan chuckled to himself, 'Imagine me wielding that giant club. It'd look ridiculous.'

His amusement faded as his eyes fell on his sword. He noticed slight chips and dents on the blade. 'Must be from using the 'Sharpen' skill,' he mused. 'I really need to find better equipment. This sword won't last long.'

Looking around, Ethan tried to find his way back to the cliff. He realized he had ventured deeper into the forest while evading the Orc. "Where did I come from?" he muttered, scanning the area.

He soon spotted the signs of the Orc's pursuit: broken branches, deep footprints, and trampled underbrush. "There we go," he said, following the trail back towards the cliff.

As he made his way, he couldn't help but think about his situation. ' I need to clear that nest before sunrise. If I reach Level 5, I'll be stronger and can handle tougher enemies. I can't afford to waste any more time.'

Ethan's resolve hardened. 'Let's do this,' he whispered, his skeletal frame moving swiftly and silently through the forest, guided by the marks left in the Orc's wake.

Ethan followed the trail and soon reached the cliff. He peered down cautiously, scanning the scene below. The goblins were still there, but this time they weren't running around in panic.

Instead, they were busy cleaning up the mess Ethan had caused—picking up the crushed bodies of their comrades and the ones he had stabbed with wooden spears.

'Looks like they think the Orc finished me off,' Ethan thought, a grin spreading across his skeletal face. This was a perfect opportunity for an ambush.

With his goal clear, Ethan moved forward with purpose. He descended the path down the cliff, his bony form blending with the shadows.

He positioned himself behind a large tree, its thick trunk providing ample cover. From this vantage point, he watched the goblins toil away, oblivious to his presence.

His eyes darted from goblin to goblin, assessing their movements and waiting for the perfect moment to strike. The anticipation made his bones tingle with excitement.

"They have no idea what's coming," he whispered to himself, the blue flames in his eye sockets flickering with intensity.

Ethan's gaze locked onto a goblin standing closer to him than the others. His skeletal fingers tightened around the sword's hilt, and with a thought, he activated "Dash."

In an instant, he appeared behind the goblin, his blade slicing through the air with lethal precision. The sword cut through the goblin's head at an angle, from the crown to the jaw, severing it cleanly. Blood sprayed as the goblin's body began to collapse, but Ethan was already moving.

Without pausing, he sprinted towards the next target, his speed and agility making him a blur in the dim light. His sword flashed, and the air was filled with the screeches of dying goblins and the metallic scent of blood.

Each strike was precise and each movement calculated. Ethan was a whirlwind of death, his skeletal form dancing through the chaos he created.

In less than a minute, it was over. Five or six goblins lay dead, their bodies crumpled on the ground, blood pooling around them. Ethan didn't bother to clean up; this time, he was going all in.

He turned his attention to the cave entrance, the dark maw of the goblin nest beckoning him. "This ends tonight," he muttered to himself, his voice a cold whisper in the night. His eyes burned with blue flames, reflecting his unyielding resolve.

With a final glance at the carnage he had wrought, Ethan stepped towards the cave. His bones clicked softly with each step, the sound barely audible over the stillness that had settled after the brief but brutal fight.

The cave was eerily quiet, the stillness almost oppressive. Wooden torches clung to the stony walls, their flickering light casting long, wavering shadows.

The path was tall and wide, tall enough for an Orc to stand upright without touching the ceiling, albeit by only a few inches, and wide enough for one to walk through with their massive clubs.

Ethan moved forward with deliberate caution. "There must be more Orcs, more than just a few, for the whole cave path to be made this big," he muttered to himself, hypothesizing the size of the tribe that resided within.

Ethan knew that he needed to keep his advantage and so, he began extinguishing every torch he came across, each hiss of the dying flames echoing ominously in the cavern.

The darkness enveloped him, his skeletal frame blending seamlessly into the shadows. His blue eyes, glowing faintly, were the only light source he needed, granting him a spectral vision in the pitch-black surroundings.

After extinguishing the last torch, he reached a junction where the path split into three directions.

Without hesitation, he chose the leftmost path, a narrow corridor that beckoned him deeper into the cave's depths.

As he proceeded, he continued to snuff out the torches, the dark corridor growing ever more impenetrable to those without his vision.

Soon, he came across a larger chamber, the walls spreading outwards. The room wasn't taller than the path, but it was significantly wider.

His eyes scanned the area, spotting an assortment of smaller holes in the walls, each filled with fur pelts and tufts of grass, forming crude nests.

Ethan stepped cautiously into the room, his senses alert for any sign of danger. The air was thick with a musty scent, mingling with the faint, metallic tang of blood. There were no goblins present, no movement save for the flicker of shadows cast by the last remaining torch.

'Maybe this room isn't important, or the ones that were here went outside and got killed by me,' he mused, his voice a mere whisper against the stone.

Curiosity piqued, he approached the smaller holes in the wall. Peering inside, he saw the goblin children, their tiny bodies huddled together for warmth and security.

They were oblivious to his presence, their sleep untroubled by the carnage outside.

A wave of uncertainty washed over him. What would he do with them? If left on their own, they'll grow into goblins and become threats. But they're still children. Could he really kill them?

His mind drifted back to an anime he had watched in his previous life, Goblin Slayer.

A particular quote echoed in his mind: "A good goblin? I guess there might be one if you looked really hard. But in the end, the only good goblins are the ones who never come out of their holes."

Ethan sighed, steeling himself. They were not equal to human children in his eyes. And even if they were, he didn't care enough about them either.

His emotional detachment from his past life had been amplified by his transformation and the perks it brought. Ethan truly didn't feel much for others, except for himself.

Steeling his resolve, Ethan raised his sword and methodically ended the lives of the goblin children. Each strike was precise, the cold steel severing their fragile existence with a grim finality.

As he wiped the blood from his blade, Ethan felt no remorse, only a cold, calculated determination to see his mission through.

Notifications popped up in his vision.

[You killed a Level 0 goblin. You obtained 1 Exp.] x18

The room now silent, he turned away, the lifeless bodies left behind as a testament to his resolve. The darkness of the cave seemed to embrace him as he moved forward, ready to face whatever lay ahead.

—---

A/N: Alright! Before you go ahead saying killing children is too much, let me tell you something about Ethan's psyche.

He has been tempered by the knowledge about goblins from all the media he has consumed, whether it be novels, video games, anime, manga, anything...

So he doesn't show pity for them, his mind doesn't even think whether the goblins in this dungeon are human rapists and killers or not.

He didn't find any evidence regarding goblins being bad but he still slaughters them with ease, just based on his preconceived notion.

Its not like he doesn't have pity, he does, you will see it in future chaps, he just doesn't has it for something "evil" like goblins or monsters.

In simple terms of you asked him, whether given the chance to kill Hitler as a baby, will he take it? He will say yes without thinking, because he thinks he already knows what Hitler is going to become, but instead of trying to correct him, he just wishes to destroy him.

Hope you understood a few things about Ethan's character, you can think of this as his flaws, which will be explored in future.

vote in the announcement chapter of One piece: Bone demon if you want me to continue churning out chapters for this one.

Also, new ideas and constructive criticism is always appreciated.