Warren led the motley procession of his companions through the dense forest, the trail they followed little more than a game path. With each step, the branches of the trees and bushes clawed at his clothing, threatening to ensnare him. In the distance, an unearthly scream echoed through the trees.

  Kassandra froze, her hand falling to her weapon. “What was that?”

  “I have no idea,” he muttered. “But at least it wasn’t human.” As he finished speaking, he pulled up his map. They had nearly reached one of the markers for the Steampunk Goblin Invasion event. And no other world monsters were anywhere close to them. He’d have to assume the sound had come from one of the aliens or goblins.

  I pray it’s not the Vudha Overmind, he thought. However, he didn’t recall any of the creatures making loud noises—even when they were being killed. He suspected most of the aliens in that faction didn’t communicate by sound.

  Moving forward, he held onto a tree branch as he descended a rocky incline. The soil had long ago worn away here, revealing boulders and tree roots. The hills in this area were a nightmare to navigate, but so far, they’d been making decent time.

  He looked back to check on the others. Behind Kassandra strode Zarya, who squinted her eyes every time she stepped into a patch of sunlight. According to the alien, she’d come from a planet with a red sun, where the days existed in a perpetual state of twilight.

  Taking up the rear was Kassandra, who carried a rifle, along with a sack full of ammunition and explosives. They hadn’t been sure what they would face during the challenge, so they’d brought all the firepower they could carry.

  In his own bag, he had a few handguns along with more ammunition. He’d wanted to bring some Tannerite as well, but Kassandra had dismissed the idea outright. She was worried if he got hit by a stray shot, he might get blown to smithereens. And in her words, then humanity’s hope would die with him.

  He hated the idea of thinking he was more important than the others. As it was, he still didn’t like the idea of sending in his minions to fight without him. But she might be partially right—the fate of the town rested on his shoulders.

  Reaching a rocky outcropping, he stopped and peered down at the valley. Directly below them was a bustling settlement, seemingly conjured up from nowhere. The walls had been constructed with a combination of earthworks and lumber, while cannons protruded from bastions. Inside, there must have been at least a dozen large buildings, many of them belching black smoke.

  He watched the settlement for a few minutes, trying to gauge how many goblins they were facing. While he couldn’t get an exact number, he suspected there must be at least 100—with possibly many more hidden away inside of structures.

  As he watched, parties of goblins arrived carrying logs and baskets full of black rocks he assumed were coal. An immense forge had been set up at the center of the settlement, where dozens of the green-skinned creatures hammered away at metal.

  Worried he might be spotted, he retreated back into the cover of the thick brush. The others stood close behind him, their own gazes fixated on the goblin settlement. None of them spoke for a long time.

  Finally, he broke the silence. “Does anyone have a plan?”

  “Oh sure,” Valentina said. “We’ll just fucking bust in there like Rambo and kill a few hundred goblins. No problem.”

  Zarya scowled at the green beret. “I have no doubt our glorious liege will defeat the foul challenge monsters.”

  “Thank you for your faith in me, Zarya,” he said. “But I could use some ideas on how to go about doing that.”

  Kassandra, who had been quiet until now, twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “What if we pick them off a few at a time?”

  Warren returned to watching the settlement. His friend’s idea might just work. Every couple of minutes, patrols and gathering parties left through the gates. If they could take out a few smaller groups, then they’d greatly reduce the manpower left to defend the settlement.

  He frowned as he realized he had no idea how to win the challenge. “Zarya,” he said, “How are world challenges like this normally defeated?”

  The alien woman pressed a finger to her lip, as though in deep thought. “I apologize, my liege. However, I do not know the exact way to defeat this challenge.”

  “Do you have a general idea?”

  “Normally,” Zarya continued, “a large group of challenge monsters are led by a commander. However, this is not always the case. Sometimes a squire is required to eradicate an entire group of monsters.”

  Warren thought back to the Mongrel Orcs he’d faced at the Seymour Mountain Resort. He hadn’t received a notification that he’d completed the challenge until he’d slain every last one of them. Hopefully, it wasn’t the same for the goblins.

  After another few seconds to examine the settlement, he settled on a plan. “We’re going to lie in ambush for one of the patrols,” he said. “After we’ve thinned out the goblins a bit, we’re going to sneak into the settlement. There are a few places along the walls where we should be able to scale them without being seen. Once inside, we’ll find the leader and take it out.”

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  Valentina pressed her lips together. “For the final phase, I think we should split into two groups. Why don’t purple space princess and I cause a distraction while you two sneak inside? That way, you won’t have any of those fuckers surprising you.”

  “That’s a good idea,” he said, nodding his head. “But I don’t want either of you putting yourself in danger. When the time comes, if the goblins get too close, retreat and meet us back at the cabin.”

  “You got it,” Valentina said with a grin. “Unless we need to save your ass.”

  “I’m being serious,” he said firmly. “This challenge isn’t worth anyone dying for.”

  Valentina only shrugged in response.

  “Ignore your troublesome underling,” Zarya said. “I will ensure we engage in a strategic retreat when required.”

  The green beret snorted in response and crossed her arms. As she did, her breasts pushed together deliciously and threatened to overflow her top.

  Warren wanted to push the matter further, but he had a feeling Valentina would only ignore him. Hopefully, with Zarya at her side, she wouldn’t put herself into too much danger. Nothing was worth losing one of his companions.

  Their course of action decided, they set out across the hill toward where they’d seen the gathering parties depart. This time, they moved more slowly, conscious of the fact that these hills were swarming with goblins.

  Warren wondered how the green-skinned creatures would react when they spotted them. From looking at the settlement, they appeared far more intelligent than the orcs. Would they try to flee back to safety? Or would they mindlessly attack him?

  Also, he worried that he wouldn’t be able to defeat the goblins without using his combat deck. While his group had rifles, along with Zarya’s manasword and magical armor, he wasn’t sure if it would be enough to defeat the diminutive humanoids.

  Would he have to use his combat deck? If he had to activate his deck to defeat each group they ambushed, it would take days to clear out the first settlement. He couldn’t waste weeks fighting the goblin horde—not even for a significant reward.

  The first battle should answer all of his questions, so all he could do for now was to try to focus on the present. But even after deciding that, worries continued to pile up in his mind as they picked their way through the forest.

  Along the way, they heard a goblin gathering party pass nearby. They all ducked into cover, though Zarya had to be pulled down by Valentina. The alien woman muttered something about it not being honorable to avoid a confrontation, but he didn’t catch the entire exchange.

  After about half an hour of hiking, they arrived at a rocky ravine. From the steep walls, water trickled out in mini waterfalls, while vibrant greenery clung to every patch of earth. Inside, the goblins had been hard at work excavating a coal seam, and broken stone littered the landscape.

  “This looks like a good place,” he said. “Why don’t we position ourselves on top of the ravine, with Zarya and Kassandra hidden down here to cut down any of the goblins who try to flee?”

  Valentina pointed at the east side of the ravine. “We should make sure we’re all on the same side. We don’t want any crossfire hitting a friendly target.”

  “Good idea,” he said. “Any other suggestions?”

  When Valentina shook her head, he started the arduous climb up to the rocky wall. The twisted trees and stunted bushes helped him ascend, but he was sweating by the time he reached the top.

  Throwing his leg over the lip, he dragged himself and his rifle onto the uneven top. He then retreated back into the cover of the scraggly trees. Though there was little topsoil here, the plants had wormed their way into crevices in the stones. Somehow, life always found a way.

  Valentina dragged herself up a second after him, cursing under her breath. He hated having to constantly ask her to push herself, but they needed her skill with a weapon. Once this was over, he hoped he could give her a few days to rest and recuperate.

  Below them, Zarya had blended into the vegetation. Apparently, her armor also possessed a stealth function, and after she activated it, she shimmered before becoming almost invisible.

  Kassandra, on the other hand, had settled for hiding in a dense bush. But the end result was the same—neither of the woman could be seen by a casual observer. The goblins wouldn’t know anyone was there until it was too late.

  “You sure it’s a good idea to leave the purple bitch down there?” Valentina asked. “What if she runs off and tells the rest of those alien assholes right where to find us?”

  Warren rubbed a hand down his face. He didn’t completely trust the alien woman, but they needed the extra manpower. Still, he would plan for the worst. “If she tries to betray us, I’ll have my minions hunt her down. She won’t be able to escape from Saberlyn.”

  “Fuck, I’ll take her out if it comes to it.” Valentina stared down the scope of her rifle, pretending to shoot Zarya.

  “Please tell me your safety is on.”

  Valentina gave him a sidelong glance. “I’m a green beret, doc. You think I’d mess around with something like that?”

  “I know how much you dislike her—”

  “My squad is probably gone because of aliens like her,” Valentina said fiercely. “Yes, normally I wouldn’t point my weapon at anything I didn’t plan to shoot. But right now, I say the only good alien is a dead alien.”

  While he didn’t necessarily agree with the green beret, he understood where she was coming from. The aliens had already killed Kassandra—and she’d only been brought back by what amounted to a miracle. If something happened to his sister in town, or anyone else he knew, he might start thinking more like Valentina.

  Before he could reply, he heard the guttural sound of goblin voices. Sinking lower in cover, he pushed a leafy branch in front of his face. A second later, over twenty goblins trudged into the ravine.

  The ones in the lead had murky green skin and were clad in little more than rags. The creature’s heads appeared far too large for their bodies; their swollen bulbous noses overhung their faces, and their mouths were filled with yellow, square teeth. In their hands, they clutched simple pickaxes and shovels. Most of them had name plates that read ‘Goblin Miner, Level 2.’

  The ones taking up the rear were a completely different story. They wore fashionable fitted coats, trousers, and leather boots up to their knees. Many had top hats or bowler hats perched on their oversized heads. Each of them was armed with bronze rifles that almost resembled paintball guns, with a large cylinder positioned near the stock.

  As if the sight of the rifles wasn’t disheartening enough, nearly all of them were at least level 4, with a handful reaching level 5. Even if they didn’t have ranged weapons, this wouldn’t have been an easy fight. But since they’d be able to shoot back at him and Valentina, that changed his calculations completely.

  Warren frowned as he tried to decide on a course of action. They could remain hidden while the goblins did their mining, but then he’d have wasted most of a day. Alternatively, he could attack, and if things became dicey, he could use his combat deck. Though he hated to waste an activation on a small group of goblins.

  “What’s the holdup?” Valentina hissed from beside him.

  “Nothing,” he replied, peering down his rifle sight. If he didn’t take risks, he would never catch up to the alien squires. And then his caution would doom everyone in town to slavery or worse.

  No matter what it took, he had to grow strong enough to free the town. With that thought in mind, he took a deep breath and lined up a shot at the nearest goblin. Then he squeezed the trigger.