Chapter 22: We’re Going to Die

Chapter 22: Chapter 22: We’re Going to Die

He had already realized it the moment he saw her, but weren’t goblins supposed to be ugly and aggressive creatures? Because this goblin right here, even in the darkness illuminated by the flashlight on the floor, looked... adorable.

Victor frowned. He placed the first-aid kit on the floor and opened it. Inside were several disposable tools for treating serious wounds, such as scalpels, needles, and much more. This really was a deluxe item.

Brika watched the box Victor had brought with wary curiosity. She seemed to recognize the things inside, so she showed a little more confidence as the human put on his gloves.

"Well, I’ve never done anything like this before. I only took part in a few drills while I was serving in the military, so I can’t promise the wound will be properly stitched up," Victor said as he disinfected the needle and thread with alcohol.

"I don’t care anymore. If I don’t die here, those things will kill us later."

"Damn it, why are you so pessimistic? I just don’t get it."

Brika looked away, ignoring his question. Victor paid attention to her, but he had to concentrate on what he was doing, or he’d mess it up.

"How did you get this wound? It doesn’t look like your organs are damaged, so I guess you got a little lucky."

She didn’t answer. Victor sighed.

’Yeah. It’s better this way. No one will make any unnecessary noise.’

Things outside seemed to have gotten a little crazy. Soft tapping sounds echoed against the houses, like someone throwing a handful of dirt at a wall. The wind was blowing hard, and the mist was drifting in their direction.

That, along with the fact that he could now only distinguish the scents inside the house, made Victor somewhat nervous.

He brought his hands toward Brika’s abdomen, waiting for her to give him permission to begin. She showed no embarrassment; if anything, she seemed angry rather than embarrassed.

Yeah. This was awkward.

Brika lifted the animal hides covering part of her torso with her small hands, revealing three claw marks across her abdomen.

’I think I can stitch these up without too much trouble. I mean, thank goodness the wounds aren’t any deeper, because I wouldn’t know how to deal with that.’

He wasted no time and got started. With the help of gauze and plenty of alcohol, he cleaned the area around the open wounds. Then, using the needle and surgical thread, he began stitching through Brika’s skin with crooked, uneven stitches.

Brika didn’t complain. Somehow, Victor could tell she was used to pain. In fact, when he glanced at her, he could make out several scars on the goblin girl’s skin.

’She said she was a warrior. I guess she wasn’t lying about that. No one who’s still alive would have this kind of scarring on their body.’

After several minutes, he finished closing the wounds, but one important thing remained.

"I need you to sit up. I’m going to wrap your torso in bandages. After that, don’t strain yourself too much, or the stitches will tear."

Once again, the goblin said nothing. Silently, wearing that expression that made her look angry all the time, she sat up and raised her arms.

Then Victor wrapped the bandages around her torso and finished the job, looking Brika in the eyes.

She remained motionless, staring back at him, until she finally grew tired of it and asked, "What now?"

Victor looked genuinely confused.

"Well, I don’t know. I didn’t think we’d get this far. For now, I don’t think we should move from here. Some kind of storm is raging outside, and going out there with those monsters lurking around would mean certain death."

After returning to where he’d left his rifle, Victor sat on the floor directly in front of Brika. Then he picked up the goblin’s pistol and reinserted the magazine.

He waited a few seconds, trying to figure out whether he could actually trust this strange girl not to shoot him on the spot after all.

’Maybe I’m making a mistake, but I already promised myself I’d take risks to win. If having someone here is what I need to survive, just like that bastard said, then I have no choice but to accept my situation.’

He couldn’t get through this alone. That much was clear.

’And my weapon is bigger,’ Victor thought before sliding the gun across the floor toward the goblin.

Brika looked up, confused. The weapon was now within reach of her hand.

"That’s yours," Victor said.

"It is, but..."

"This is our deal. You’re my weapon in this game. You’ll keep me alive, and I’ll do the same for you. For that to work, you need your weapons."

Brika took the gun in her hand.

"How strange..." she said. Then she pointed the pistol at Victor.

’I knew it,’ he thought.

He was ready to kill her, but Brika slowly lowered her weapon, lost in thought. That surprised Victor, but he smiled faintly. It meant she was giving their deal serious consideration. That was good, so he looked at her, his face hidden in the shadows, and said, "A guy betrayed me."

Brika raised her gaze. Victor continued.

"He came to me, saying he’d protect me, but in the end, it was all a lie. All he wanted was to turn me into a slave without a will of my own, just like he’d done to other participants. That happened only a few days ago."

As he stared at the weapon in his hands, Victor felt anger burning inside his chest.

"I survived by a miracle, and now I’m here. That’s why I said I wouldn’t show you any mercy if you did the same. I won’t hesitate to kill you if that happens."

For a few seconds, Brika remained silent. Then she opened her mouth as if she wanted to speak, but she seemed somewhat hesitant.

"Victor, that was your name, right?" Brika finally said. "Where I come from, the ones who threaten to kill you are the first to die. And like I told you before, we’re both going to die. It doesn’t matter whether we kill each other or a monster gets us. We’re going to die."

"How can you be so sure about that?"

"Because I know what’s out there. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. We can’t fight them."

Out there, the ones without bodies. The ones that moved like a faint, dark breeze. Those that heralded death with their horrifying claws. The monsters of this dark scenario.