Tangeni squeezed through the crack in the wall and came out in a narrow alley between two crumbling buildings. The goblins were still pouring into the storefront behind him, and he could hear them screeching when they found the body of their dead friend. He had maybe thirty seconds before they figured out where he went.
He ran before they could figure it out.
The alley opened into another street, this one lined with collapsed houses and overgrown with weeds that came up to his waist. He pushed through them as fast as he could, trying to put distance between himself and the mob behind him. His lungs burned and his legs ached and the pipe in his hand felt heavier with every step.
Seventy-three viewers now and the number kept climbing.
[Chat]
[bestlittlesis: tangeni please dont die im literally shaking rn]
[lonely_ghost: he's actually moving]
[viewer_47: this guy is built different]
"Chat," he gasped between breaths, "if I die here, tell my mom I love her and tell my sister she can have my room."
[Chat]
[bestlittlesis: STOP TALKING JUST RUN PLEASE]
He ducked around a corner and found himself in what looked like an old marketplace, stalls collapsed and goods rotted away centuries ago. More goblins were coming from the other direction now, probably responding to the screaming, and he was about to get caught in the middle.
He spotted a doorway to his left and dove through it, landing hard on stone floor and scrambling behind an overturned table. The building was some kind of old tavern, dusty and dark with the ceiling half caved in. Light came through holes in the roof, enough to see by but not much else.
The goblins ran past outside, still screaming, but they hadn't seen him duck in.
He pressed himself against the wall and tried to control his breathing, but he couldn't slow it down. His hands wouldn't stop shaking and the pipe was slick with sweat now, mixed with whatever was left from the first goblin.
A donation notification popped up in his vision.
[Donation: 1 credit]
[do_a_flip_42: do a flip]
He stared at it for a second, then let out a laugh that was half relief and half disbelief. "For one credit? Chat, I'm literally hiding from a goblin horde and someone wants me to do a flip. I'll think about it."
He did not do a flip.
Eighty-nine viewers now. His first donation ever and it was one credit for a flip he wasn't going to do.
He stayed hidden for a few minutes, letting the goblins spread out and lose his trail. The screaming faded as they searched other buildings, other streets, probably assuming he kept running instead of hiding. Goblins weren't smart, which was the only reason he was still alive.
When it seemed quiet enough, he crept toward the back of the tavern. There had to be another way out, a back door or a cellar or something. He couldn't stay here forever and he still needed to find the Goblin King if he wanted to get out of this dungeon.
The back of the tavern had a staircase leading down into darkness, some kind of storage cellar or basement. He didn't love the idea of going underground but it beat staying here and waiting to get found.
He started down the stairs and that was when he heard it—heavy footsteps, much heavier than a goblin, coming from somewhere in the darkness below.
He froze on the stairs and felt his stomach drop.
Something moved at the bottom of the stairs, something that was twice his height and built like a truck. Green skin and yellow eyes like the others but with actual muscle on its frame, and it carried a wooden club that looked like it could take his head off in one swing.
[Hobgoblin (E-rank)]
[Warning: Enemy exceeds your current rank]
He looked at the thing and knew he was in serious trouble.
[Chat]
[viewer_47: BRO THATS A HOBGOBLIN]
[lonely_ghost: HES COOKED]
[randomgamer42: rip stream lmaooo]
[bestlittlesis: no no no tangeni please get out of there right now]
The hobgoblin roared and charged up the stairs.
He ran back into the tavern and the hobgoblin followed, smashing through the staircase door frame like it was made of paper. The thing was fast for its size and he barely made it behind the bar before it swung its club and destroyed the table he was hiding behind earlier.
Wood splinters flew everywhere and he ducked, feeling something cut across his arm. Blood started running down his sleeve but he didn't have time to check how bad it was because the hobgoblin was already winding up for another swing.
He couldn't fight this thing head on. His pipe wouldn't even dent it and one hit from that club would kill him. He needed to be smart.
Then he noticed the floor.
The tavern floor was old wood, rotted in places, and he could see gaps where boards had fallen through into the cellar below. If he could get the hobgoblin to step on a weak spot, maybe he could drop it.
He backed up toward the center of the room, feet testing the boards as he went. The wood creaked under his weight, soft in some places and solid in others. He found a section that felt ready to give way and stopped there.
"Hey ugly," he said, holding the pipe like he actually knew how to use it. "Come get me."
The hobgoblin roared again and charged.
He waited until the last second, then dove to the side.
The hobgoblin's foot came down on the weak section of floor and the wood gave way with a crack that echoed through the tavern. The creature screamed as it fell, crashing through the floor and into the cellar below. The impact shook the whole building and dust rained down from the ceiling.
He crawled to the edge of the hole and looked down. The hobgoblin was still alive, thrashing around in the darkness below, but one of its legs was bent at a wrong angle and it couldn't climb out. It roared at him, reaching up with one massive arm, but the cellar was too deep.
"Holy shit," he said, "that actually worked."
One hundred and twelve viewers now.
[Chat]
[viewer_47: NO WAY THAT WORKED]
[lonely_ghost: BIG BRAIN PLAYS]
[bestlittlesis: i literally screamed when that worked omg 😭]
[randomgamer42: actually insane wth]
He sat back from the edge and took a breath. His arm was bleeding and his whole body hurt and he was pretty sure he was going to have nightmares about goblin screeching for the rest of his life, but he was alive.
Then he noticed something in the cellar, visible in the light coming through the hole. A skeleton, old and dusty, wearing the remains of armor. Some adventurer who died down here a long time ago.
And next to the skeleton, still clutched in bony fingers, was a sword.
He climbed down into the cellar, keeping his distance from the hobgoblin that was still trying to reach him. The skeleton was against the far wall, away from the thrashing monster, and he made his way over carefully.
The sword was rusty but intact, a shortsword with a chipped blade and a leather-wrapped handle. When he picked it up, the System recognized it immediately.
[Obtained: Chipped Shortsword (E-rank)]
[Attack: +15]
[Durability: 23/50]
An actual weapon, his first real weapon.
He looked at the sword in his hand, then looked at the hobgoblin still screaming in the darkness, then looked at his stream.
One hundred and twenty-six viewers watching him hold his first real sword, and somewhere in the distance he could hear more goblins screaming. They knew he was here now and the whole dungeon was waking up.
He gripped the sword tighter and started climbing out of the cellar. The hunt was just getting started.