For a while, they didn't take any quests. They slept, ate, recovered. Toby chatted with other adventurers. Knight practiced quietly in the back alleys behind the inn with a stick he'd shaved into a dull sword. Each morning, he would return to the guild, look at the board, and feel that subtle pull—the one that told him it was time to try something harder.
A few days later, Knight found himself standing in front of the quest board once more, side by side with Toby. The early bustle of adventurers filled the room around them, voices trading stories and rumors over the smell of ink and parchment.
He watched silently as Toby's eyes moved across the board.
"There," Toby said, tapping one of the sheets. "Goblin subjugation. Not too far from town, pays decently."
Knight squinted at the parchment. Just below the messy text was a crude drawing of a goblin holding a club, stick-figure limbs flailing dramatically.
He nodded once. "…Fine."
He was still unsure of his combat capabilities and if he was strong enough to fend off a group of goblins. But there was Toby—he'd seen the guy fight a little during the labor jobs, and he moved with confidence. That quiet fear in Knight's chest shrank a little.
They stepped into the guild hall and approached the same receptionist Knight had spoken to before. She greeted them with a warm, if slightly cautious smile.
After Toby explained their selection, she gave them the details: location, confirmation of the reward, and a few words of warning. Goblins weren't terribly dangerous alone, but in caves, numbers could be unpredictable.
Once registered for the quest, the two made their way to the market district.
It was busy full of clanging metal, shouted barters, and the smell of bread, sweat, and something vaguely burnt. They stopped at a general goods stall where Toby helped pick out a small lantern, a pack of dry matches, and two cheap stamina potions sealed in cloudy glass vials.
Knight paid his share without complaint, though his coin pouch grew worryingly light.
With supplies packed and the quest logged, the two left the busy market behind, weaving through the winding outskirts of town and into the open hills beyond.
The road faded quickly, giving way to uneven dirt and scattered stones. Trees thickened around them, their branches whispering with the breeze. The further they walked, the more the sounds of the town disappeared, until it was just birdsong, the rustle of leaves, and the crunch of their boots.
Toby hummed a little tune as he walked, bouncing the lantern lightly in his hand.
Knight, a few paces ahead, sighed. "You're still talking?"
"I'm not talking," Toby said. "I'm humming."
"Same thing."
Toby grinned. "You know, this would be way more awkward if only one of us talked and the other just kept glaring."
"Then stop talking."
"That's the opposite of what I was getting at."
Knight exhaled sharply through his nose. "You don't even know me. I could be a thief. Or a killer."
"Right, but I've seen killers. You don't move like one," Toby said easily. "You walk like someone who's tired all the time and doesn't know what to do with their hands."
Knight gave him a sharp look. "…And what's that supposed to mean?"
Toby shrugged. "Just means you don't scare me. I figured I'd help out a guy who looks like he's got nowhere else to go."
Knight stopped walking for a beat, then turned back toward the trail.
"…You're annoying," he muttered.
"Sure am," Toby replied cheerfully.
They continued on in silence for a while though only because Toby took a break to sip from his canteen. The path soon turned rocky and narrow, and ahead loomed a shallow cave mouth nestled beneath a jagged ridge. Dark vines hung down like curtains.
Toby clicked on the lantern. "This should be the place."
Knight stepped forward, peering into the gloom. The light only reached so far just enough to reveal old footprints, a broken crate, and a rusty dagger half-buried in the dirt.
They entered cautiously, the air growing cooler around them. The light from the entrance faded quickly behind them, swallowed by damp shadows and curling mist.
The cave was deeper than expected. Too deep.
"Thought this was supposed to be a short job," Toby murmured, frowning as they descended another narrow slope. "You sure this is the right place?"
"There was only one cave marked," Knight said. His voice was low, tense.
They passed another branching path—this one unmarked—and Toby slowed.
"I don't like this," he muttered. "Goblins don't usually nest this deep unless they're hiding something."
Knight didn't respond. His eyes were focused, trying to adjust to the shifting shadows.
Knight's eyes darted left and right. Every shadow looked like it was shifting. Every noise echoed too long. The path had split twice already, but they kept moving forward, guided by rough footprints and the occasional scuff of claw marks on stone.
"This doesn't feel right," Knight muttered.
Toby grunted. "Yeah. I was thinking the same—"
Crack.
It was like a hammer slamming into flesh.
Toby's words cut off as he jerked forward violently, a sharp blur striking the side of his head. The lantern clattered to the ground and rolled away, casting wild shadows across the walls.
Knight froze. "Toby?"
No response. The other boy collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut, unmoving.
"You gotta be fucking kidding me"
Then—thwip.
Pain erupted in Knight's shoulder.
He staggered back, barely catching sight of a crude arrow embedded in his upper arm before he dropped to one knee. His breath hitched.
It was an ambush.
He gritted his teeth and snapped the arrow's shaft, hissing as he yanked the rest out. The shadows shifted again movement in the dark.
Goblins.
And more than one.
Knight's heartbeat thundered in his ears as he scrambled to his feet, blade drawn and back to the wall. His eyes darted between Toby's crumpled body and the growing sound of claws scraping on stone.
"…Damn it," he breathed.
They were surrounded.
Knight barely had time to register the goblins rushing in.
A high-pitched snarl and one was already on him.
Its rusted dagger came down fast. Instinct kicked in. Knight threw his arm up to block it not with the sword, which he'd dropped, but his bare forearm.
Steel tore into flesh.
He screamed, stumbling back as the goblin yanked the blade free, leaving a jagged wound trailing blood down his arm. The pain was sharp, cold, and immediate.
He barely stayed upright.
Another shape lunged from the dark bigger.
Boom.
The impact was like getting hit by a cart. The Hobgoblin crashed into him full-force, slamming Knight into the cave wall with bone-cracking force.
His breath was suddenly forced out of his lungs with the crunch of his ribs breaking.
His ribs screamed. He dropped to the ground, wheezing, fingers clawing at the rocky floor in search of the sword that wasn't there.
He saw it just inches away.
He reached
White-hot agony lanced through his chest. He couldn't breathe. Couldn't move.
He collapsed face-first into the dirt, vision blurring.
This can't be it, he thought. Not here. Not now.
Somewhere nearby, Toby still wasn't moving.
Knight's trembling fingers reached into his pouch, brushing over the cold glass of the stamina potion. His hand shook as he dragged it out and couldn't uncork it in no time.
So he bit down.
Crunch.
Glass shattered between his teeth. Bitter liquid flooded his mouth, mixed with blood and shards, burning down his throat.
But he swallowed.
And something snapped.
It wasn't the pain vanishing far from it. The pain was still there, howling like fire through his body but suddenly, his limbs answered again. His muscles surged with raw, desperate energy.
His hand gripped the ground.
He pushed himself up, blood pouring down his arm, eyes blazing under his matted hair.
He wasn't just going to let everything end like this
The goblins didn't hesitate.
As soon as they saw Knight rise bloodied, barely standing, and eyes blazing with pain-fueled resolve they lunged again.
But this time, he moved first.
Knight charged.
Not toward the Hob. Not toward the dagger-wielding goblins.
Straight at the one in the back the archer, already knocking another arrow.
It didn't expect him to run straight through the pain with blood dripping down his chin and hands.
Knight slammed into it, grabbed its filthy green head in both hands and rammed it full-force into the cave wall.
Crack.
The goblin collapsed in a heap, skull caved in, bow clattering to the floor.
Grabbing the bow as it hit the ground, Knight turned
A dagger drove into his back just below the shoulder blade.
He screamed, turned around blindly and swung the goblin's bow like a club, smashing it across the attacker's face. Once. Twice. Again. And again. Until bone snapped and green blood splattered across the stone.
He panted, barely conscious. His back throbbed, and his vision blurred again.
One goblin and a hob. This was pretty doable
He ripped the dagger out of his back with a ragged gasp just in time to raise it and block the final goblin's strike. Their blades clashed, trembling against each other, but the goblin shrieked in frustration as it was jolted back.
Then the Hob charged again, club raised high.
Knight's instincts screamed. He let himself fall sideways just as the Hob's strike came down—
Crunch.
The club obliterated the goblin behind him, sending green chunks and blood flying against the cave wall. The Hob froze, confused by what it had just done.
Knight didn't waste the opening.
He grabbed the dagger and lunged.
Straight into the Hob's hands.
Getting rid of its weapon and reducing its combat capabilities was his top priority.
It roared, massive arm swinging punching Knight in the side of the abdomen.
All air was forced out of his lungs again but it didn't stop him from drilling the rusty dagger into the hob
Another punch. Then another. One hit his stomach. Another broke something in his jaw. But Knight kept stabbing, again and again, the dagger hacking through muscle, bone, flesh — everything.
The Hob raised a final fist.
Knight stabbed it through the neck.
The beast howled, spurting out blood. Its body shook and stumbled.
Then collapsed, finally, with Knight falling over it, breath ragged, blood pouring from a dozen wounds.
Everything hurt.
And the cave had gone quiet.
"…Knight?"
The voice was weak. Fragile. But it was real.
Knight slowly turned his head.
Toby lay sprawled near the cave wall, pale and groaning as he tried to sit up. His face was bruised, a gash on his temple still bleeding. He blinked, dazed, looking at the blood-soaked mess standing over a Hob's corpse.
His eyes widened.
"Holy… you're alive."
Knight didn't answer. He just stared down at his own hands—coated in green and red, trembling. His legs gave out and he collapsed onto his knees, chest heaving.
Toby dragged himself over, wincing with every movement. "What the hell happened…"
"…We're done," Knight said quietly, his voice hoarse. "It's dead. They're all dead."
"Seriously?"
Knight didn't nod. He just stood there, breathing hard.
Toby let out a long, shaky sigh. "Damn. Guess you're stronger than you look."
Knight snorted through bloodied lips. "Guess I'm just too stupid to die."
They exchanged a look. Bruised, battered, barely standing—but alive.
It started to rain as they left the cave.
A cold drizzle at first, then heavier. Soaking their hair. Their wounds. Washing away the blood in slow, meandering streaks. The path was muddy and their steps were slow, dragging.
No words passed between them at first.
Then Toby groaned, clutching his side. "Okay, I'm definitely gonna need healing. Might actually puke."
Knight, for some reason, let out a dry laugh. Just a puff of air at first. Then another.
And then he was laughing—really laughing. Sputtering and wheezing like he couldn't stop, rain pouring down his face like tears. His shoulders shook, half from pain, half from something else.
It wasn't joy.
Not exactly.
It just felt good. To still be breathing. To have done something that mattered. For once.
Toby gave him a weird look, then chuckled too, though it turned into a cough. "You're weird, man."
Knight snorted through bloodied lips.
They started walking. Slowly. Together.
Toby swayed to the side and Knight caught his arm. A second later, Knight stumbled on a rock and Toby grabbed his shoulder to steady him. It wasn't graceful. It wasn't heroic. But they kept each other upright.
The rain kept falling, cold and steady, soaking through their clothes and plastering hair to their faces. But neither of them complained.
They limped down the muddy path, bruised and battered, half-carrying each other like drunks after a tavern fight.
One step at a time.
Toby winced. "Think we look cool right now?"
Knight grunted. "We look like corpses that forgot to die."
Toby laughed again, hoarse and tired. "Still cooler than nothing."
And so they walked, two idiots holding each other up in the rain, broken but still moving