“… I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…!”
She was out of breath and opened her mouth tiredly, but the howling of the goblins coming from afar made her dare not even stop or look back.
At this moment, she finally understood why the receptionist of the Adventurer's Guild tried so hard to dissuade her. Goblins were indeed very weak, and any normal adult could easily bully a weak goblin. However, if there were more than ten goblins, each with murderous intent and weapons, and used their cunning to attack, the scene... ...
This is the result, this is the most real world of adventurers...
“Ugh, ah…!?”
In an instant, the sudden severe pain made the priestess fall to the ground. When she turned around, she saw that her priest uniform was stained with blood and an inconspicuous arrow was deeply inserted into her shoulder.
The priestly disciplines forbid priests from excessively arming themselves, so most church members are ascetics who do not wear armor. The only exception is the church knights who carry out the will of the Lord.
Naturally, the priestess was not a member of the Knights Templar, so she was easily wounded. When she moved only slightly, she felt pain in her shoulder hundreds of times more intense than when she was shot just now, as if a pair of tongs were inserted into the wound.
“Woo, woo, woo…!”
In the distance, two goblins were gradually approaching with their mouths grinning and saliva dripping from the corners of their mouths. Their eyes full of lust revealed the despair of their prey.
At this moment, accompanied by a burst of clear, orderly and resolute footsteps, a faint light came from the depths of the darkness. The small but bright light from the torch slowly approached.
At the same time, reflected in the priestess's bewildered eyes, a figure like a devil from hell slowly approached the space filled with goblins.
Chapter 53: Only the goblin who never appears in front of people is a good goblin!
Chapter 53
The figure slowly walking out of the darkness made the originally quiet atmosphere in the cave even more eerie, and the alert goblin raised his hand and shot an arrow at the man in the distance.
In response to this, in the darkness, the man wrapped in armor used his sword to knock away the arrow shot by the goblin, and immediately used his shield to bounce away the goblin that pounced on him with the help of the shadow.
What kind of skill has been honed over and over again, and how many times of repeated training is required to achieve this move
In response, as the priestess looked at a loss, a voice slowly came from under the helmet...
"One."
After saying that, Goblin Slayer pressed the torch in his hand against the face of the goblin who tried to attack him. The wailing ended, and a goblin's body appeared in the cave.
In the distance, the goblin holding the bow was about to escape, but due to the priestess's instinctive blocking, in just a moment of stiffness, the dagger of the scalded goblin was stabbed into the head of his companion.
"Two."
A moment later, the goblin died with his skull shattered.
Soon, after a battle without honor and a victory stained with blood, the Goblin Slayer in dirty armor slowly pulled out a dirty dagger covered with brains.
Seeing this scene, the priestess beside her watched his actions in fear and trembling. Even though the other party saved her, in her eyes, the other party was like a monster far more terrifying than a goblin.
"... Excuse me, who are you...?"
Finally, the priestess, unable to suppress her fear, endured the pain and asked in this quiet atmosphere.
The answer came...
"Goblin Slayer."
—Not a dragon slayer, nor a monster hunter, but a slayer of the weakest goblins.
If this funny name were heard at any other time, almost everyone who heard it would burst out laughing. But at this moment, in this atmosphere, the priestess could not feel any mocking or funny emotions.
Because the other party is just as his name suggests, the real deal, Goblin Slayer.
... ... .
After the filming of this part of the plot was completed, the next step was to start the scene arrangement. During this process, Du Lin first showed the already filmed parts to the noisy adventurers present.
As a result, the adventurers who had already watched the plot on the set could not believe the difference between the actual scene and the scene captured by the camera.
Even though Saeki had read the script countless times and even participated in the performance himself, he couldn't help but sigh, because in the picture adjusted by the camera, the overlap of blood and fire was even more impressive.
When the Goblin Slayer walked towards them from a distance with footsteps visible to the naked eye, everyone felt a sense of relief for surviving the disaster and a sense of fear for being shrouded by the aura of death, as if they had been drawn into the story told in the movie.
The filming process was a brand new experience for these adventurers, and when they saw the film completed in the process of their participation, they felt an indescribable sense of honor and pride. That feeling was definitely better than killing a hundred goblins.
In short, after the first short preview, everyone present burst into applause, and it was obvious that they became more motivated. This is probably the charm of the film.
After that, the filming continued and preparations began. Many of the props that had been used just now had no intention of being removed at this moment and were left there. Deeper in the cave, the scene layout staff had already arranged the environment to what Du Lin needed according to his requirements.
As for the actors, after watching the performance just now, if Durin was still a little worried about the acting skills of these adventurers who had never performed before, now he was completely relieved. Although he didn't know whether it was the effect of the suggestive magic, or because of their true colors, or both, it was the suggestive magic that triggered their true colors. In short, during the performance, the actors hardly had any problems. The only problem was when a goblin started to become disobedient and crazy.
Eventually, everyone returned to normal and filming of the second half of the second act resumed.
... ...
Under the guidance of the super veteran Goblin Slayer, the priestess quickly followed him to the deepest part of the cave. This time, even the Goblin Slayer had no intention of trespassing. He only took one step after making some small arrangements and plans.
At the same time, the priestess who followed Goblin Slayer's plan slowly raised her staff and murmured, "Great God of Light, please grant us the divine light when we are lost in the darkness...!"
Because the main faith of this world is the church, Du Lin also made some modifications to the script in this regard. Otherwise, it would be interesting if he created a new sect and the church knew about it.
In short, accompanied by the holy light magic released by the priestess, the Goblin Slayer turned his back to the dazzling light and rushed into the cave hall where the goblins were ambushing. Under the illumination of the holy light, the ugly faces of the goblins became clearly visible.
There are six ordinary goblins in the hall and one big goblin. In addition, there is a character sitting on a chair with a skull on his head. It is obviously a goblin shaman who can use magic.
"Six, plus one big guy and one shaman, eight left."
Faced with the sudden light, the goblins who were used to the darkness immediately struggled in embarrassment because of the glare. Only the goblin shaman, a superior race, ignored the light, raised his staff high, and began to chant an unknown spell.
But in just a moment, as the Goblin Slayer threw the javelin in his hand with incredible accuracy, the Shaman's torso was pierced by the javelin. He let out a dying wail and fell off the chair.
After completing this action, before the goblins could panic after discovering that their leader was dead, the Goblin Slayer had already turned around and ran back towards the cave.
This scene spanned half of the cave. Not to mention the difficulty in shooting, the requirements for the actors were unparalleled. During this process, Saeki, who played the Goblin Slayer, relied entirely on his personal strength to accomplish all of this. He is indeed an experienced adventurer, and he has even personally experienced everything in the plot in his past adventurer career.
So at this moment, he seemed to have really entered into the identity of Goblin Slayer, displaying a professionalism that made everyone present break into a cold sweat.
In short, in this performance, Saeki's strength as a fourth-order sword spirit and silver-level adventurer was clearly displayed. Whether it was physical strength, endurance or unparalleled precision strikes, he conquered everyone present with his absolute strength. The adventurers who were originally somewhat dissatisfied with his ability to play the leading role because of his eccentric personality began to admire him. After all, such strength is rare even in the Northern Adventurer's Guild where there are many strong people.
The only thing that surprised everyone was that they had never seen this powerful adventurer before, but there was nothing they could do about it. After all, in order to cut off all ties between himself and the past, Saeki did a lot. Even the name Saeki was just a pseudonym.
... ... .
Finally, after killing all the Goblin Slayers in the cave and the Priestess reached the deepest part of the cave, the Goblin Slayer flipped over a specially hidden wooden board with ease.
Inside this goblin's warehouse, besides the looted property, there were also four goblin children hiding with frightened expressions on their faces.
"We are lucky. These guys reproduce very quickly. If we were a little later, they would have increased to about fifty and attacked the human village."
As he spoke, Goblin Slayer clenched the stick in his hand tightly as he faced the shivering little devils.
“… Even children, are you going to kill them?”
As soon as the priestess finished speaking, she realized the answer, because even she was surprised at the coldness of her own voice.
Is it the mind, or the mood, that faces reality - and becomes paralyzed
"Of course."
Goblin Slayer responded in a more indifferent or matter-of-fact tone: "They will never forget this hatred. The goblins who survived in the nest will learn from this lesson, become smarter, and then, take revenge!"
Goblin Slayer raised his stick and said slowly, "There is no reason to let them live."
"... Even if there are kind goblins inside...?"
"A kind goblin?"
Hearing the Priestess's innocent words, Goblin Slayer paused for a moment as if in disbelief, and then gave a decisive answer: "If we go looking for him, he might be there, but... only goblins who don't show up in front of people are good goblins!"
After saying that, blood and fire completely dyed the dark cave red.
Chapter 54 The Wheel of History
Chapter 54
The promotion of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Beautiful World" went very smoothly. Soon, all the major cities in the South were filled with discussions about "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Beautiful World" and the movie.
And because the Adventurer's Guild has been showing movies outdoors in several cities with local theaters for its own benefit, the traditional theaters have completely broken with the Southern Territory Adventurer's Guild, which represents the film industry, in order to protect their own interests. During this period, all kinds of dirty tricks were really visible to anyone with a discerning eye. But even so, it was of no avail under the tide of changing times. They could only watch their customers being snatched away by the emerging industry of film. The income of major theater troupes in the South Territory dropped significantly in a short period of time.
The only good news for them is that some old aristocrats cannot agree that movies are something that even common people can appreciate, so they stand on the same side as the theater with their pride as the upper class. Although it cannot be said that they are suppressing movies, their attitude clearly shows that they do not want your film industry to get better.
In short, even with the suppression of many old forces, movies still entered the public's field of vision in the South, and even in the most remote villages one could see young people discussing such interesting things as movies.
Under such circumstances, the thing that the Southern Territory Adventurer's Guild wanted to see the most happened, that is, a massive increase in the number of adventurers. It can be said that with this level of surge in the number of people, the Southern Territory Adventurer's Guild jumped from the guild with the fewest adventurers to the guild with the largest number of adventurers. Although the quality is definitely not as good as that of other realms, for the Southern Territory, the number of adventurers is the key.
As these huge changes occurred in the South, even though the transportation in this world was underdeveloped and information spread slowly, news about the movie and "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World" was no longer limited to the South, but had spread to even more distant places.
... ... .
Mage's Tower, the top floor.
An old man sat slowly in the room on the top floor of the Tower of Knowledge, and opposite him sat a relatively young figure. That was Roy, whom Durin had met before, the chief magician under the Grand Duke of the Southern Territory, a great magician second only to Durin.
At this time, facing the old man opposite him, even he did not dare to have any more thoughts. He just sat respectfully and said, "Teacher Hohenheim, this is the imaging crystal invented by Junior Du Lin. I privately used part of the power of the Duke of the Southern Territory to obtain the sample from the Southern Territory Adventurer's Guild with great difficulty."
As he spoke, he placed a medium-sized magic crystal on the table between the two of them and injected magic power into the copied imaging crystal.
Soon, a vivid picture appeared on the wall nearby, and that was the picture of "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World".
"this... ... "
Seeing this scene, the old man's eyes, which were originally slightly narrowed, suddenly opened. At this moment, even Hohenheim, the manager of the Mage Tower, the dean of the Imperial Mage Academy, and now the top sage, showed a surprised expression, and reached out to touch the inconspicuous imaging crystal. However, no matter how he touched it, the picture on the wall continued to play.
"This is the imaging crystal. Junior Brother Du Lin invented a magic crystal that can project images. In addition, it is said that there is also a matching instrument that can record images. The effect is as you can see. The recorded images can be projected like this. These days, the entire southern region is in a sensation because of this kind of movie invented by Junior Brother Du Lin. If nothing goes as expected, this situation will spread to the imperial capital next."
After Roy's explanation, Hohenheim finally understood the meaning of this technology. After thinking about it, he frowned and said, "What do you think the Empire will think about this?"
"Although this technology is only used by Junior Du Lin to make movies, if the Empire knew about it, they would probably immediately think of its role in various fields, especially military and intelligence... They would definitely try to obtain it. If Junior Du Lin disagrees, he might even be threatened with house arrest."
Roy spoke his mind honestly, and Hohenheim made a similar judgment. After all, the friction between the empire and its neighboring countries has become increasingly serious in recent years, and any means that can increase military strength will be used to the utmost. Once this technology that can record images is discovered, it will undoubtedly be coveted. At that time, the first person to bear the brunt will be Durin himself, who invented this technology.
"That kid never liked to listen to me. He clearly had a bright future and could inherit everything from me, but he acted very reluctant. Even if his magic talent was not good enough, he could still be a great sage, but he didn't focus on his own magic power. Instead, he liked to delve into alchemy..."
Hohenheim's expression suddenly turned bad, as if he had recalled the irritating things that happened before. Roy fanned the flames and said, "I still remember that when you drove me away, I was so angry that I locked myself up in this tower for several days without eating or drinking. You were so reluctant to let me go, you shouldn't have let me go in the first place."
“Oh, who can’t bear to part with that brat?! Even if I can’t find an heir in this lifetime, I won’t take the initiative to call him back!!”
"Yes, yes. So what should we do now? At least I am here to hold you accountable. The news has not yet reached the imperial capital so quickly. But if the empire really knows about the video recorder and imaging crystal invented by Junior Du Lin, they will definitely find a way to obtain them as soon as possible. And with Junior Du Lin's temper, I don't think he will hand them over openly."
Hearing Roy's words, Hohenheim also frowned. He first glanced at the imaging crystal again, and then said, "That bastard, before he left, he was talking about alchemy being the future and magic alchemy being the driving force leading to progress. I was very disdainful of him. I made him drop out of school to make him face reality. But now he has really made some progress, and I can't even find a reason to refute him."
"so what?"
Roy showed a confused expression. After all, he knew that his teacher would not make unnecessary remarks for no reason.
As expected, as if he had made up his mind, Hohenheim slowly said, "In short, this time, our Mage Tower must stand on the side of that kid. As for what he is willing to do, whether to hand over the technology directly or do something else, it all depends on him. Also, who is the current manager of the Alchemy Tower?"
"I remember it was Scar, his brother was also your disciple."
"Is that so? Then you go and inform him that from today on, the Alchemy Tower will no longer be a secondary branch of the Mage Tower, but an independent tower for magicians. Magical Alchemy will also become an independent discipline, recruiting students through formal channels like all other magic disciplines. The technology of Magical Alchemy will also become a part of the history of magic, and those who invent the technology of Magical Alchemy will be eligible to receive the honor engraved on the Mage's Monument."
Chapter 55: Filming in Progress
Chapter 55
The world view setting of "Goblin Slayer" is actually quite different from this world, so the biggest problem for Dooling during the filming was actually to resolve these discrepancies.
Therefore, after filming the second scene, which is the memories of Goblin Slayer, Durin began the endless work of revision. Many elements in the plot were localized and revised by Durin according to the current situation of this world, especially the settings about religion and Adventurer's Church. Due to the big gap between the original work and this world, it took Durin a long time to make it in line with the audience's experience.
Originally, Durin even wanted to delete the Goblin Slayer's memories, but after careful consideration, he decided to retain this part that enriched the character of the Goblin Slayer. In the end, it was indeed the right decision based on the viewing experience after filming.
With the arrival of the first plot point in the original story, the filming of "Goblin Slayer" has entered a difficult stage.
Seeing the Goblin's lair that was built by Guildmaster Elisa with the workers and some northern adventurers being destroyed in the battle between the protagonists and the trolls, Du Lin realized that this underground space that was built with great difficulty would be destroyed because of filming. He showed a helpless expression and said, "I was thinking about starting a tourism business in the future, but it was destroyed like this..."
"Director Du Lin, did you say anything just now?"
In response to Alyssa's curious question, Du Lin simply shook his head and directed: "Anyway, the battle part has been filmed almost, it's time to get the troll out!"
Yes, what is being filmed right now is the end of the protagonist group's first mission, where they encountered an enemy beyond imagination, the troll, in the underground space and ended up in a tough battle.
As a result of this battle, according to the script, the troll will die under Goblin Slayer's portal scroll, because this portal scroll is not the usual precious prop for adventurers to escape, but a reverse teleportation scroll that summons things from the target location.
As for the things summoned, Goblin Slayer connected them to the deep sea. When the portal scroll was activated, the pressure on the seabed would spray out the sea water with terrible power. At that time, not to mention ordinary trolls, even fully armed chariots could be destroyed in an instant.
This is also Goblin Slayer's trump card, but his original idea was to use this scroll to destroy the goblin nest.
In short, although the filming of this scene was very difficult, the main problems were concentrated on the props or the scene layout, but fortunately a wealthy Northern Guild President provided all the funds for the filming. Her lavish spending made her look like a so-called domineering female president, and the filming of "Goblin Slayer" went smoothly.
... ... .
At the shooting site, the camera set up by Durin clearly recorded the battle between the protagonists and the trolls in the distance. However, due to the pursuit of authenticity, the Headless Knight and Wiz were not present, so the troll was purely relying on biological instincts and trying his best to tear apart the humans in front of him.