The fine rain mixed with mud and blood.  

Souta advanced.  

Spoon in hand.  

Whirlwinds of shards.  

Goblins torn apart.  

— These goblins are eight or ten times stronger than the previous ones.  

— But they feel as fragile as babies.  

The invisible voice replied with irony.  

— You grew stronger after killing Garra.  

— Your stats skyrocketed.  

— Now you face Class D, B, and C.  

— And your strength... rivals Class S monsters.  

Souta smiled.  

Thoughtful.  

Defiant.  

⋯  

Notifications appeared:  

> “New skill: Reflecting Spoon.”  

> “New skill: Tornado Spoon.”  

He raised the spoon.  

A colossal tornado swept the field.  

Hideouts destroyed.  

Goblins flying like leaves.  

Two alpha goblins emerged.  

Class A.  

Grotesque aura.  

Uncoordinated movements.  

They attacked.  

But fell into the trap of Distrust.  

Confused.  

They struck each other until death.  

Souta watched.  

Sarcastic smile.  

Protective Smile activated.  

⋯  

Creamy warned:  

— “Something big is coming.”  

A crater.  

Smoke.  

Heavy footsteps.  

The silhouette appeared.  

Four meters of fury.  

Pantox, the Ripper.  

Queen of the Goblins.  

— A man?  

She looked at the sea of corpses.  

Disbelief.  

Contempt.  

— How... did this man alone do this?  

Her voice made the earth tremble.  

— Human... do you know who I am?!  

Souta replied, his smile widening:  

— Of course.  

— You’re the ugly, fat beast I’d never take out to dinner.  

Pantox roared.  

— How dare you kill my children?!  

— Children? All of them yours?  

— If they inherited those ugly faces... where are the fathers?  

She exploded in fury.  

— I am Pantox, the Ripper!  

— Seventh divine general!  

— I’ve destroyed entire villages!  

The forest ignited.  

Green flames.  

Crimson eyes.  

Souta murmured:  

— Hm? You’re one of the divine generals...  

The magical pressure rose.  

Pantox felt it.  

Souta smiled.  

— That makes things easier.  

She demanded:  

— Are you one of the twenty Court Drones?  

He answered with cold sarcasm.  

The smile intimidated.  

Enchanted.  

— You killed Garra, my companion!  

— I will exterminate all of you!  

She unleashed spells.  

Greenish shadows.  

Explosions.  

Souta dodged.  

Choreographed.  

Reflecting Spoon.  

Tornado Spoon.  

Pantox cast “Cutting Black Forest.”  

Creamy warned before impact.  

— “Dodge!”  

Instant Step activated.  

Souta escaped by a hair.  

— Why did you tell me to dodge, Creamy?  

— Advanced dark magic.  

— Rivals the sacred magic of the Drones.  

Souta murmured.  

— I know what to do.  

Pantox prepared the final blow.  

Souta provoked:  

— Mother of Goblins... between you and Garra, who’s stronger?  

— If I killed the sixth, the seventh should be easier, right?  

— What?!  

— You killed Garra?!  

— Blasphemy!  

He raised the spoon.  

— I used only a dining spoon.  

— Made of aluminum. I think.  

Pantox roared.  

— No Drone could defeat Garra without a divine relic!  

She fired an explosion.  

Souta absorbed it with “Emanator.”  

— You were right, Creamy.  

— This skill is useful against mages.  

Pantox froze.  

Souta advanced.  

Spells failed.  

He smiled.  

Unshakable.  

With a leap, he reversed the position.  

Pantox lost control.  

Her head, symbolically, rolled at the hero’s feet.  

— Already over?  

— Ah... it was getting boring anyway.  

⋯  

Final notification:  

> “Title unlocked: Harlequin of Fear.”  

> “Sarcastic phrases fuel your mana flow.”  

> “Dopamine increased.”  

> “Resistance against magic enhanced.”  

Souta walked among the wreckage.  

The spoon gleamed.  

Fear spread.  

And Magnapis began to tremble.  

---