Grugles. They revealed themselves. By a quick count, there were at least thirty of them.

When the hell …? Go Byeonggap muttered, unable to make sense of it. Whatever the explanation, his hand was already drawing his sword.

«What the— I didn’t feel a damn thing from these bastards!»

«They have no presence!»

Dorma’s voice was taut with tension. Byeonggap’s face crumpled as he shot back.

«No presence? What’s that supposed to mean?»

«Exactly what I said. They’re clearly alive and moving — yet they emit no life force whatsoever. As if they were already dead.»

«No life force?»

Once Dorma put it that way, Byeonggap noticed it too. The creatures carried none of the warm vitality that every living thing should possess. That was why he hadn’t sensed them.

‘Strange bastards, no doubt.’

Even their appearance was grotesque. They looked like ghosts from a horror broadcast — save for the arms and legs.

And the flesh that hung like curtains, the blood-red eyes, the gaping maws — all of it was deeply repulsive.

«They appear without sound or sign, My Lord. It was the same earlier.»

«Right. I get it now.»

The words the battle was unavoidable hit home hard.

When the enemy was right on top of you before you even knew it, how could you not fight? Whatever the case, they had to survive this moment first.

«Everyone — battle stations!»

The goblins snapped into combat readiness immediately. Numerically, they had the advantage — more than double the enemy’s count.

«Aaaah …»

«Aah …»

The Grugles shambled forward like zombies, slow and flailing. There was nothing particularly threatening about their movements.

«Wipe them out!»

«Yes, sir!»

The goblins surged forward all at once.

The raid team and Doran melted the leading enemies first. The infantry immediately joined in, stabbing into the gaps with their long spears.

The Grugles struck by blades and spears collapsed with screams.

Go Byeonggap infiltrated straight into the heart of the enemy formation.

He’d been on high alert, facing an unknown foe for the first time, but by the time he’d carved through three of them, the tension gave way to a hollow sort of anticlimax.

‘What’s with all this weak crap?’

Their defenses were a joke. He didn’t even need to put his internal energy behind the blows.

Were they at least quick? No. They were impossibly sluggish, eating every hit that came their way. Nor did they have any threatening brute strength or a hidden trump card.

All told, they were worse than G-grade monsters.

Despite their grim first impression, the fight ended in a pathetic anticlimax. Within a minute or two, thirty Grugles had been mashed into the dirt.

‘Ugh!’

As the battle ceased, a stench that hadn’t been there moments before crept up. A sickening reek that could hold its own against any foul odor in the world.

‘Where’s that stench suddenly coming from?’

The source of the rotting smell soon became clear. The dead Grugles were decomposing at an unbelievable speed.

‘…What the hell, these things. They’re not bleeding?’

That wasn’t the only weird part. Despite the fierce fight, there wasn’t a single red stain in the forest. Thirty mangled corpses should have sprayed at least a bucket of blood.

With a growing sense of unease, Go Byeonggap flipped a Grugle’s corpse over with his sword. The next moment, he grimaced.

‘No blood or organs? …Are these things even alive?’

The Grugle was just meat.

No bones, no guts, nothing — just pure flesh. So that’s why the cutting felt so strange.

«Lord, these things feel wrong.»

«Doran, drop whatever you’re holding. We don’t need it anymore.»

«Oh, yes. Got it.»

Doran casually tossed aside the head she’d been holding.

Squelch!

The head burst apart like a ripe persimmon.

‘I thought they were just another kind of monster, but they’re different. This is a type of creature I’ve never seen before. …Damn it! Is Somnium okay?’

A sudden worry for Somnium struck him.

These pieces of trash would be no match for his goblins, but he couldn’t help feeling a pang of concern.

«You all, return to Somnium immediately.»

«Hm? Will our Lord not be coming with us?»

Kiriyan asked. Go Byeonggap sheathed his sword as he replied.

«I’m going on ahead. You follow.»

Leaving only those words behind, Go Byeonggap vanished in the blink of an eye.

On the way, he focused all his senses on his eyes, scanning every corner of the forest. Thankfully, not a single Grugle was in sight.

But when he finally arrived at Somnium, he was surprised to see the messy heap of Grugle corpses.

«Ah! My Lord!»

About twenty goblins greeted Go Byeonggap. All of them were armed.

On the ground lay a dozen or so Grugle carcasses.

«Everyone alright? Anyone hurt?»

«Yep! All of us. We’re fine.»

«Is this all of them? None got inside the walls?»

«No, sir. We caught them all before that happened!»

Gobungi said it proudly. Go Byeonggap was genuinely impressed.

«Uh… good work. But how did you know these things were coming?»

«We didn’t. We were just… standing guard. Then they swarmed in. So we caught them.»

‘Did they set up a watch on their own, without me telling them?’

A faint smile crept across his face as he clapped Gobungi on the back.

«Good, excellent work! Just keep at it.»

«Hehe. Yep!»

As Byeonggap praised him, Gobungi scratched the back of his head, looking shy.

«Gobungi, bury these in the forest. Dig a hole and put them in the ground.»

«Understood. I’ll bury them.»

After giving the order, he picked up one relatively intact head.

The wall was about forty percent materialized now. He ducked through the small door at its base and entered Somnium.

He headed straight for the kitchen. He intended to see Ea.

He tossed the head outside in passing and stepped into the dining hall. Ea was busy inside the kitchen.

«Ea. Ea.»

«Oh? You’re back.»

«Were you preparing a meal?»

«Yes, it’s nearly time to start dinner. Why, do you need something from me?»

«Come outside for a moment. I have something to show you.»

«Something to show me? Ooh, I’m looking forward to it.»

Her anticipation pricked his conscience.

Go Byeonggap slipped out of the dining hall first. A moment later, Ea followed, rubbing her wet hands on her apron.

«What is it you wanted to show me—Eeek!»

Ea let out a shriek when she spotted the head. She cowered, shrinking into herself as her gaze darted between the Grugle head and Go Byeonggap.

«Th-That’s… it’s…»

«Is this one of the Grugles you told me about?»

«Ah, a-ah…»

Ea blinked her eyes instead of answering.

«So these really were Grugles. Sorry for showing you something unpleasant, but I need to ask you a few things.»

«I-It’s fine. I was just startled seeing them again after so long. Hoo… Ask me anything. If it’s something I can answer, I will.»

Go Byeonggap didn’t drag it out—he laid his questions down in a row.

What exactly the Grugles were.

Why these things gave off absolutely no presence.

Whether these lumps of flesh could even be considered living creatures.

Ea answered right away.

“Even I don’t know the exact nature of the Grugle. All I know is that they’re something the demon left behind when it departed the mortal realm. That’s why they’re called the demon’s minions.”

“That’s right — the Grugle don’t give off any presence. Some of them grow to over ten spans in size, yet even those giants go completely unnoticed until you see them with your own eyes.”

“Why are the Grugle different from ordinary living things? Well… they’re not creatures that follow common sense to begin with.”

Ea answered with all sincerity. But sincerity aside, no satisfying answers came forth.

Rather than resolving his doubts, she had merely re-emphasized the very parts he’d found strange.

«Hmm…»

«I’m sorry, I guess I wasn’t much help. Truth is, the Grugle’s existence itself is a mystery. Aside from the fact that their meat tastes absolutely foul, almost nothing is known about them.»

«No, you helped plenty. Come to think of it, you said you lived on these things before coming here?»

«That’s right. It was horrible.»

It really must have been horrible, Byeonggap thought. Surviving on rotten meat that decayed rapidly the moment it died.

He couldn’t imagine doing it himself.

«Ah, one more thing. Are these guys always this weak? They’re so pitiful it’s almost anticlimactic.»

«Like I said before, it varies by individual. The weak ones are weak. But the strong ones… they say those are beyond imagination.»

«How strong?»

«I’ve never seen one myself. But according to rumors that circulate…»

She reached out and pointed toward the peak of a rocky mountain.

«Some Grugles are said to be as massive as an entire mountain. One’s so famous it even has a name: the Titan.»

«Titan?»

«Yes, they say nothing remains in the Titan’s wake. The one saving grace is that it’s so huge you can sense it coming long before it gets close.»

Go Byeonggap looked at the rocky peak Ea had pointed to.

‘Hell, could a creature really be as big as a mountain?’

Even monsters classified as super-large barely reached a dozen meters at most.

But a mountain-sized beast? He wouldn’t be able to grasp it until he saw it with his own eyes.

* * *

«You lot I pointed out earlier — gear up and get to the wall.»

«Yes sir! Understood!»

«Alright, evening roll call is over. Everyone dismissed.»

The goblins gathered before the clock tower scattered. Some headed to the weapon storage to arm themselves and then made for the wall.

Go Byeonggap also lit a cigarette and moved toward the wall.

‘I pulled endless sentry duty on the expedition, and now I’ve gotta pull another all-nighter. What a life.’

The complaint leaked out of him unbidden. Yes — he was planning to stand night watch tonight.

After all, it was the first day the fog had been cleared, and they’d already encountered Grugle. He figured tonight was one he’d have to spend with his eyes wide open.

Tiring, sure, but better than lying awake all night from unease.

The wall had an interior space — wide enough to catch a few hours of sleep or store supplies.

Climbing the stairs built into the inner and outer sides led to the rooftop.

The rooftop was already crowded with goblins.

Twenty of them, all beast goblins, were on duty tonight.

«I explained what to do earlier, right? Anyone who didn’t understand?»

«No, My Lord!»

«Good. Let me stress this again: if you find anything, even something trivial, report to me immediately.»

«Yes!»

«Alright, then get to your positions.»

The wall was wide, but twenty goblins were more than enough to cover every section. Beast goblins had especially wide field of vision.

Go Byeonggap walked to the center of the wall and looked down into the dark forest.

‘Damn, it’s pitch-black.’

An utter, ink-black darkness had settled in. But he wasn’t worried. A beast goblin’s night vision was sharper than most big cats’.

‘Those things I saw during the day? No way they’re breaching this wall.’

The wall stood twenty meters high. Without serious climbing ability, scaling a sheer surface with no handholds wouldn’t be easy.

It was also thick and sturdy enough to absorb most impacts.

After staring down for a while, Byeonggap spoke to the goblin beside him.

«Tell me the moment something’s off. I’m gonna catch some sleep over there.»

«Yes! Understood. Rest well!»

Byeonggap leaned against a suitable wall and closed his eyes.

He was too tired — needed to shut his eyes even for a bit.

He woke up roughly two hours later.

«My Lord. My Lord.»

A beast goblin was shaking him awake. Byeonggap snapped to attention.

No time to be groggy. If they’d woken him, something had happened.

«They showed up? Right, let’s go.»

He followed the beast goblin’s lead to the far end of the wall.

«Those things. Aren’t they the monsters you spoke of, My Lord?»

The creature pointed in one direction. There stood monsters identical to the Grugle he’d encountered during the day.

Three of them in total.

They roamed the forest lazily, aimlessly. Surprising thing was — that was it. They weren’t doing any harm toward this side.

Byeonggap watched them for a long while, then said,

«Leave them be for now. If they try climbing the wall or threaten us, report back.»

«Yes. Understood.»

«Good work. Keep at it.»

They were an eyesore, sure, but no need to poke a hornet’s nest. Truth be told, he didn’t have a plan to deal with them anyway.

Byeonggap went back to his spot and sat down. Instead of going back to sleep, he sank into thought.

‘I need ranged weapons. A few guns would do.’