Chapter 101 - 2 versus 2

"Shit..."

Gopuro instinctively took a step backward, sweat rolling down his face and dripping onto the ground.

Gopuran wasn’t doing much better. She tightened her grip on her sword, staring at the monsters before them. Her arms were trembling slightly, despite her best efforts to keep them steady.

They had only barely managed to kill that first Dark Giant Spider by working together.

And now...

There were two more.

Each Dark Giant Spider stood roughly twice as tall as my goblins, with enormous black bodies and razor-sharp legs that could probably impale one of them with a single successful strike.

But then, Gopuro suddenly threw back his head and roared.

"RAAAAAAARRRR! BRING IT ON!!!"

Without waiting another second, he charged straight toward one of the spiders, gripping his massive axe with both hands!

"I’M TAKING THIS ONE!" he shouted. "THAT ONE’S YOURS!"

"YAH!"

Gopuran immediately dashed toward the other spider, drawing her sword as she moved.

And just like that, both goblins rushed into battle!

...

At that moment, I finally understood the meaning of a certain saying.

Courage isn’t the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.

My goblins were obviously still afraid.

I could see it in their trembling hands, the sweat running down their faces, and the tension in their movements.

And this wasn’t some negative status effect imposed by the spiders’ fear aura, either. Their minds were clear, and [Blessing of Protection] was still active.

No, this was something more primal.

The fear of death.

The fear of pain.

The fear of facing an enemy that might be stronger than themselves.

They were afraid because they understood the danger they were in.

And yet... they chose to fight anyway.

And that’s true courage.

CLANG!!!

Gopuro’s axe collided with one of the spider’s front legs, producing a sharp metallic clang.

The spider had managed to block his attack!

Before Gopuro could follow up, another bladed leg swept toward him, aiming straight for his torso.

Fortunately, Gopuro was quick on his feet.

He leaped backward, narrowly avoiding the deadly strike as the spider’s leg sliced through the air where he’d been standing a moment earlier.

WOOSH!

That was close!

However, the spider didn’t give him much breathing room.

Its remaining legs shifted rapidly to maintain its balance before it launched another attack.

Gopuro gritted his teeth and raised his axe, searching for an opening.

Meanwhile...

Gopuran was having her own problems.

She relied on her speed and agility to maneuver around her opponent, darting from one side to the other in search of an opportunity to strike.

Unfortunately, this spider was surprisingly fast, too.

The moment Gopuran tried to close the distance, the enemy’s sharp legs thrust toward her in rapid succession, attempting to skewer her on the spot!

WOOSH! WOOSH!!

Gopuran twisted her body, dodging the incoming attacks one after another.

But with so many attacks striking from different angles, she couldn’t find a safe opportunity to counterattack.

Eventually, she was forced to retreat several steps.

"Tch!"

She clicked her tongue in frustration, her eyes never leaving the spider.

Meanwhile, I watched the battle, growing more restless and worrying by the seconds.

Hmm...

This isn’t good...

This isn’t good at all!

These monsters had both incredibly high defense and powerful attacks. Their bodies were tough, their legs were deadly, and their movements were surprisingly quick.

My goblins had managed to kill the first spider because they’d worked together flawlessly to trick it.

But now, things were different.

The remaining two spiders were fully aware of their opponents, and they weren’t about to let my goblins land another easy hit.

At this rate, there was no way Gopuro and Gopuran could defeat these two on their own. Not without taking some serious risks, anyway.

I already knew that we need a different approach...

But what?

What could we do now that there were two spiders?

I watched the two battles unfold, desperately trying to think of something.

Just then, suddenly, Gopuran’s voice rang out through our connection.

"Big Boss! I have an idea!!!"

"Yes? I’m listening!"

She swiftly dodged another attack, ducking beneath a blade-like leg before darting away to safety.

Then she quickly explained her plan to me.

I listened, considering it for a moment.

...Hmm.

This would require an almost flawless level of execution and coordination...

But since I could communicate with both of them in real time and give them signals, it might actually be possible.

Still, it was risky. Very risky, actually.

But given our current situation, I wasn’t sure we had a better option.

"You think it’ll work?" Gopuran asked.

"Well, let’s give it a try!"

*****

And so, I relayed the plan to Gopuro as well.

The moment he understood what I had in mind, he nodded without hesitation.

Rather than trying to attack the spider head-on, he shifted to a defensive approach, focusing entirely on dodging its deadly legs while keeping his distance.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

CLANG! CLANG!

The spider’s blade-like legs stabbed toward him one after another. Whenever Gopuro managed to block a strike with his axe, the impact sent sparks flying.

Still, the guy was surprisingly nimble.

He twisted aside, ducked beneath another strike, then hurried backward just as a sharp leg stabbed into the ground where he’d been standing.

Rather than counterattacking, he kept moving.

And the spider followed.

Meanwhile, Gopuran was doing much the same thing with her own opponent.

She darted from side to side, occasionally rushing forward just enough to provoke an attack before quickly retreating. Her sword remained raised defensively, and she never stayed in one place for more than a moment.

At first glance, it probably looked as though my goblins were running around aimlessly.

But that wasn’t the case at all!

They were deliberately manipulating their opponents’ movements, trying to make both spiders focus entirely on them while gradually drawing the monsters closer together.

It was a dangerous strategy, though. One wrong step, and either goblin could end up skewered by one of those blade-like legs.

Still, the two of them were executing the plan surprisingly well.

Step by step, the distance between the two battles grew smaller.

One spider lunged at Gopuro, forcing him to leap sideways to avoid being impaled. The other chased Gopuran as she slipped past its front legs and circled around its flank.

Then, just as the spiders prepared to attack again, Gopuro deliberately retreated toward Gopuran.

She noticed immediately and dashed in the opposite direction, drawing her pursuer along with her.

And before either monster realized what was happening...

The two enormous creatures were almost standing side by side!

Perfect!