Reincarnated as a random race, of course I got goblin.

Chapter 124 - Wicked Bloom

So there's no direct interaction between you and the target. You're just reading the area for disturbances in the magic... 

I sigh with relief, fighting off the last bits of queasiness. 

"I'm fine, I just panicked. Apologies for having you take the risk of capturing this thing only for me to kill it on accident." I get to my feet, leering at the oily stain slowly spreading from the place where the body double used to be. 

Alrond walks up to me, Arme now safely tucked into her bag. "Are you sure you're okay?" He asks, then continues in a hushed whisper; "Will we still be able to find the true one?" 

I nod in the affirmative. "Yes, everything is fine. Thankfully my Cloud Fist technique kept me safe." A lie. I merely slapped the tongue away, but the technique is a real one. Practiced predominantly in Feyloche, it is a method of imbuing ones limbs with Elemental Magic to protect and strengthen. 

Of course, the real thing wouldn't be able to do what I just did as it's an entirely supplemental technique. A weak imitation of Spells such as Red Hot Claw.

Seems the others have bought the lie. Eager to get out of the now torrential downpour, we all file back to the inn. 

"I managed to trace it, just in time. Tomorrow I can lead you straight to it." I inform Alrond.

"Then we set out at dawn." He nods before entering his room. 

"Just ahead, it should be hiding within the hollow log." I point at a large fallen tree. Its insides carved out by a Logbore Beetle long ago. 

We're all on edge. The entire Illomen feels off. It's too quiet, too few monsters, even the plantlife seems sparser. Slowly we inch towards the true Mananangals hiding place. 

One hunter fetches an item from their bag. It has a strange, oblong shape with a t-shaped handle at one end. "Brace!" He shouts, and everyone covers their ears and closes their eyes in response. 

Pulling the handle out of the device, a thin whistle can be heard building in volume from the item, a small plume of smoke issuing from the now open hole. Quickly, the hunter throws it into the hollow log, into the opposite end from where we are waiting. 

"Pshhiiiiiiii-Boom!"

Even when covering my ears and closing my eyes, I'm still affected by the blast of noise and light. It seems this 'flashbang' is extremely effective against any kind of monster. Thankfully, Shadow is able to override my sudden descent into flight or fight. 

A strained gargle is heard from the log, as the Manananggal shambles- dazed and confused- from the log. The hunters all recoil slightly from the horrid visage it presents.

A pair of human legs from which a spine protrudes, ending in a heart-shaped crystal. This is the form the true body of the Manananggal takes once Body Double is used. I wonder, briefly, how on earth it was affected by the flashbang when it has neither eyes nor ears.

"Chi-chi-chi" An uncomfortable chittering signals the beginning of combat. A formless blob of Dark manifests over its 'head' before shaping itself into a Dark String Spell. 

Although cautious, the hunters expertly dodge the incoming Spell. One responds with their own Spells, hurtling a Fireball towards the monster. 

With surprising agility, the Manananggal leaps backwards, out of the reach of the Fireball, only to discover it has entered the reach of a great-axe wielding hunter. 

"Chi-CHI!" Bending uncannily, it attempts to coil out of the way of the rapidly descending great-axe, just barely managing to avoid being fatally hit. Dark Magic shrouds its left leg as it prepares a counter-attack. 

Using their axe as a shield, the hunter is able to avoid being perforated by the Manananggals kick, but the force of the impact sends them skidding backwards, the head of their great-axe entirely ruined by the corrosive effects of Dark. 

Alrond has been taking aim all this time with his crossbow, and once the great-axe hunter is out of the way, he loosens a bolt towards the monster. The design of the bolt is strange, looking more like a screw than a normal bolt, it seems designed to bore into flesh and stay there to hamper movement.

A cruel tool indeed... 

It catches the Manananggal right in the hip, piercing through both legs and locking them in place. 

"CHI! CHIIII!" It cries out in pain, desperately trying to move its legs, only to trip over itself. From there, the coup-de-grace is delivered swiftly. Severing the heart-shaped crystal from the spine sends a violent convulsion through its body, before the entire thing goes limp. 

"It's done." I mutter, relieved. Alrond walks up to the body to investigate, only to stop halfway. 

"Do you feel that?" He asks. 

All my hairs stand on end as a low rumble rolls towards us, building in intensity. Earthquake? 

*Warning - LEAVE - It's blooming*

"Wha-" I stammer before Shadow takes control and uses Teleport to get us all out of there. Once I can see again, I notice we're at G'cal, having suddenly appeared in the middle of the market square, there's panic and confusion all around us.

But not only because of us, it seems. Even though I'm dazed from the sudden influx of events, I quickly sprout wings and take into the sky to get a better look. 

In the distance, from somewhere within Illomen, a billowing cloud of gaseous Malice is pouring out. Like the pyroclastic flow of a volcano erupting, it's relentlessly spreading outwards. 

"It's going to swallow everything. All is lost." 

NO! We were so close! Just a bit more time! Just a bit more time to get prepared! 

I grit my teeth, angry tears falling from my cheeks. If only I could withstand Malice... If only I could somehow stop this!

As if answering my prayers, a golden light appears. Quickly forming into a circular dome, the golden light hardly even flickers as the roiling wave of Malice slams against it. As if there's an intelligence to the vapor, it seems to pull back slightly before throwing itself against the barrier again. 

Again and again, like a frustrated child. But the barrier holds strong. 

*One month. That is all we can give you. The Fate of this World depends on your swift actions.*