The deeper Elios went, the quieter the cave became.
Not the kind of silence he had felt before.
This one was different.
It wasn't empty.
It was watching.
Each step he took echoed faintly against the stone, but even that sound felt muted, as if the cave itself was swallowing it before it could travel too far.
Elios slowed.
Not because he was tired.
Because something ahead felt—
wrong.
Not unfamiliar.
But closer.
"…You're near."
The words left him without effort.
He didn't need to search anymore.
He could feel it now.
That presence.
The same one.
Clearer than before.
Stronger.
And waiting.
Elios tightened his grip on the blade and stepped forward again.
A faint sound broke the stillness.
Movement.
Not one.
Several.
From different directions.
Elios stopped.
His gaze shifted slightly—
left.
Then right.
Behind.
"…Tch…"
More goblins.
Drawn in.
Not random this time.
Gathering.
The first one lunged.
Elios reacted instantly.
His body moved before his thoughts caught up—
he stepped aside, the attack missing by a narrow margin, and drove the blade forward.
The goblin dropped.
But there was no pause.
Another came.
Then another.
They didn't wait.
They didn't hesitate.
They came all at once.
Elios stepped back.
Not retreating—
creating space.
His breathing shifted again.
That same alignment.
That same control.
He focused.
Not blindly.
Not desperately.
Deliberately.
His muscles tightened—
not rigid—
but responsive.
Everything sharpened.
The movements around him slowed—
not actually—
but enough.
Enough for him to react.
The first goblin reached him.
He blocked.
The impact pushed through his arms, but this time—
he held.
He twisted—
countered—
cut.
It fell.
The second came from behind.
He turned—
just in time—
the blade scraping across its side instead of its neck.
Not perfect.
But enough.
The third—
Too fast.
It caught him.
A sharp pain tore across his side.
Elios staggered slightly.
"…Damn—!"
The goblin lunged again.
He stepped in this time.
Closer.
Too close.
But that was the opening.
The blade moved—
clean.
The goblin dropped.
Silence returned.
But not for long.
Elios stood there, breathing heavier now.
His body strained.
His side burned.
His arm ached.
And beneath it all—
the hunger stirred again.
Stronger.
More insistent.
"…Not now…"
He forced it down.
But it didn't disappear.
It waited.
Just beneath the surface.
Elios wiped the blood from his blade against the cave wall.
His grip steadied.
Then—
he felt it again.
That presence.
Closer than ever.
Right ahead.
Not hiding.
Not moving.
Waiting.
Elios took a step forward.
Then another.
Slower now.
More cautious.
The cave opened slightly ahead, widening into a larger space.
The darkness there felt thicker.
He stepped into it.
And saw it.
The goblin stood in the center of the space.
Still.
Unmoving.
Its posture balanced.
Its gaze locked onto him.
No hesitation.
No fear.
Just awareness.
Elios stopped.
For a moment—
neither of them moved.
The air between them tightened.
Heavy.
Sharp.
Elios' grip tightened around the blade.
"…Found you."
The words came out low.
Steady.
The goblin didn't react immediately.
It watched him.
Just like before.
Then—
it shifted.
Not attacking.
Not retreating.
Preparing.
Elios felt it clearly now.
This wasn't like the others.
This wasn't something he could cut down in one movement.
His breathing slowed.
His body aligned again.
Not perfectly.
Not fully.
But enough.
"…Come."
The word wasn't loud.
But it carried weight.
The goblin moved.
Fast.
Too fast.
Elios reacted.
Barely.
The clash echoed through the cave.
And this time—
it didn't end in a single strike.
End.