The win tasted like blood. It was a mix of the goblins' blood and their own.
After the last bit of life energy was taken from the open spot, a deep tiredness set in over the team. It went right to their bones.
They had hits and marks all over, but a strong new fire was in their eyes. They felt more sure of themselves. Their drive was bigger.
For the first time since they got to this bad world, they knew they could do more than just stay alive. They could beat it.
They found a safe place in a deep hole in a rock wall to rest. Rina went from one to the next. Her face was white from being so tired.
Her hands had a soft green light as she fixed the bad cuts. Steam came up from the hurt skin as it came back together.
"Stay still, Eric," she said in a low voice. Her words showed she was working hard as she fixed a deep cut on his arm. "This will take a bit."
The rush was gone. It left the real facts of where they were. But now, it was facts they felt they could deal with.
Dante sat back on the cold stone. His mind was going fast. He was not resting. He was thinking over things. He was listing what they had that was good.
They had power, and now they had facts. The words from the Goddess were the base of their whole plan.
'Ten of us,' he thought. His eyes looked over their tired faces. 'The Goddess said only six will live. That means four of these people are just for now. They are like blocks. Things to give up when needed.
If not, then I will have to lower the count with my own hands in this short trip.'
He watched Jin move his hand. Jin felt the new power go through him. 'They get strong by killing. Good. This is a world I can get.' He had set up the goblin fight as a check. A first take. It worked well.
He thought of the other rules. Each one was part of a bad game.
The forest had parts.
Hidden good things were out there.
A Bone Dragon watched the way out.
And turning on each other... it was not just a chance. It was built into the game.
'A past hero won by killing all the others,' he thought back. Not a sign to watch out. A way to do it.
They had a plan to stay alive. Now, they just had to do it.
As Rina ended with Eric, a sound came through the quiet woods.
It was a scream.
It was not the cry of a monster. It was from a person. It was full of pain and fear so deep it made the air cold. The scream stopped with a bad sound.
The team got up fast. They forgot rest. They had weapons ready.
"What was that?" Eric asked. His voice was low and deep.
"Trouble," Dante said. His voice had no feeling and was cold. "And the worst kind at that. Stay ready. Let's go."
They went slow toward the sound. They moved between the big, strange trees like they were not there. The smell of new blood came to them long before they saw what happened.
It was a thick, metal smell that said death was there.
They looked through the thick plants into a small open spot. They saw a big massacre.
The bodies of at least five students were all over the ground. Their nice party clothes were ripped and wet with blood.
In the middle of the bad scene, one of their old classmates was still alive. But just a little.
A long sword was stuck right through his chest. It held him to the forest ground. His eyes were big with surprise and hurt. They asked for help as he coughed blood. The sound was wet and full of need.
Drip. Drip.
His life went away with each weak breath.
Standing over him was another group of students. All guys. All had blood from the ones they killed on them.
There was no fear in their eyes. No surprise. There was only the cold, proud look of hunters who liked what they did.
Dante looked at his own team. Their faces showed they could not believe it and were scared. 'Good,' he thought. 'Let them look. Let them know.' This was not a fight with monsters. This was killing people. This was the turn on others the Goddess had said about. It was right in front of them.
The leader of the other team was tall and strong. He had a mean smile. He put his boot on the dying boy's shoulder. He took the handle of his sword.
Shhhhlk.
With a wet, ripping sound, he pulled it out.
The boy took a breath. It was a last, hard ask for life. His hands moved weak in the air.
The leader just laughed. He lifted the bloody sword high. He pushed down again.
Thunk.
He stuck the blade deep into the student's heart. He ended his life with a last, mean push.
A stuck scream came from Erica's mouth. It was a sound of full, real fear she could not stop.
It broke the quiet of the open spot.
It made every head turn to them.
Pairs of eyes that wanted blood looked at them. They had just done a big kill.
The leader's smile got bigger. His eyes shone with a bad, wanting light.
The human element had found them.