“Dang… so there’s a huge goblin chasing me right now,” I muttered while running through the trees. My heart pounded in my chest, and my legs felt like they were about to give out. “This might be a good time to try out that Devour skill.”

  I skidded to a stop and turned around just long enough to shout.

  “DEVOUR!”

  For a moment, nothing happened.

  Then a calm voice spoke inside my head.

  “You must be standing close to use the ultimate skill Devour.”

  I froze.

  “Wait… what?” I whispered.

  A voice? In my head?

  “And why did it just call Devour an ultimate skill?”

  Behind me, branches snapped as the goblin crashed through the forest. The creature was ugly and massive, with green skin and long arms that dragged close to the ground. It snarled as it ran, showing rows of crooked teeth.

  “Okay,” I said, trying to stay calm. “First thing’s first. If the voice says I have to be close… then I need to get close.”

  Easy to say. Not so easy to do.

  The goblin swung a heavy arm at me the second I stepped toward it. I jumped back just in time. The attack smmed into the ground where I had been standing, sending dirt and rocks flying.

  “Why does this goblin have to be this strong?” I groaned. “I can’t even get near it.”

  The monster roared and rushed forward again.

  Think. Think!

  Maybe I didn’t need to attack from the front.

  If I could get behind it…

  I circled slowly, keeping my distance while the goblin stomped around angrily. When it finally turned its back to me, I clenched my fists.

  “This has to work.”

  I sprinted forward.

  “NOW—DEVOUR!” I yelled.

  The voice returned immediately.

  “You must do sufficient damage to use Devour.”

  I stared in disbelief.

  “ARE YOU SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?!”

  So not only did I have to get close… I also had to beat this thing up first?

  “Great,” I muttered. “Now I actually have to fight it.”

  The goblin turned just in time to see me charging.

  “Okay,” I said under my breath. “I can do this.”

  I swung my fist.

  Smack.

  The goblin stumbled back a step.

  “Hey… that actually worked!”

  Before it could recover, I rushed forward again.

  Punch.

  My fist hit its jaw.

  The goblin roared in anger and grabbed my shirt, but I didn’t stop.

  “Tackle!”

  I smmed into its stomach, and the two of us crashed into the dirt together. The impact knocked the air out of my lungs.

  The goblin punched me in the shoulder.

  Hard.

  Pain shot through my arm, but I forced myself to keep moving.

  We rolled across the ground, both of us exhausted and barely able to stand.

  It looked like we were both one hit away from colpsing.

  “This is it,” I gasped.

  The goblin raised its arm to strike again.

  “If we get hit one more time, we’re both done.”

  I pushed myself forward with the st bit of strength I had.

  “This is the perfect time.”

  I grabbed the goblin by the arm and shouted with everything I had left.

  “NOW—GO DEVOUR!”

  For a moment, the world went silent.

  Then the voice returned.

  “You have successfully used Devour.”

  The goblin’s body began to break apart into glowing particles of light. The energy rushed toward me and disappeared into my chest.

  “You have obtained the ability Brute Strength.”

  “Your strength has increased by one point.”

  I blinked in surprise.

  “What…?”

  The voice continued.

  “You have gained the special skill Transform.”

  “With Transform, you may override all skills and debuffs of the creature you consumed.”

  “Would you like to transform into a goblin?”

  A strange menu appeared in front of my eyes.

  YESNO

  I didn’t hesitate.

  “YES.”

  A warm energy rushed through my body. My bones shifted, and my skin tingled.

  When the feeling finally stopped, another screen appeared.

  Name: RenAge: N/ALevel: 1

  Strength: 4 / 10Speed: 1 / 10Defense: 2 / 10Magic: 0 / 10Stamina: 1 / 10

  Skills:

  Brute Strength

  Weapon Bash

  Defense

  Debuff: Starved

  Description: You are always hungry. Until you eat a human, you will remain weak. If you consume a human, you will evolve into a Hobgoblin, removing this debuff and gaining new skills.

  I stared at the screen.

  “Well… looks like I still keep my name and level,” I said quietly.

  My voice sounded rougher than before.

  “And I think I finally understand something.”

  I looked down at my green hands.

  “I think I know why goblins are always trying to eat humans.”

  A chill ran down my spine.

  “Okay,” I said quickly. “Let’s undo this.”

  I raised my hand and spoke clearly.

  “NOW—HUMAN FORM.”

  The energy returned, and my body shifted again. A second ter, I was back to normal.

  I let out a long breath.

  “Good. That was weird.”

  Now that the goblin was gone, the forest felt quiet again. Too quiet.

  “Well,” I said, stretching my sore arms, “time to go look for more mon—”

  I stopped.

  Slowly, I turned around.

  Something was standing in the distance.

  It was huge.

  Much bigger than the goblin I had just fought.

  The creature stood nearly seven feet tall, with thick muscles and dark armor made from bones and metal scraps. Its eyes glowed red in the shadows of the trees.

  The monster looked directly at me.

  A message appeared in front of my eyes.

  Goblin General detected.

  My stomach dropped.

  “…Looks like I found something way worse.”

  The Goblin General smiled.

  And then it started walking toward me.