One Week Earlier…

  "So, Audi, have you thought about what job you want?" Jazz leaned forward with a smirk, tossing a glowing crystal between her hands. "You're mase, so obviously, you should be a knight."

  Ford crossed his arms. "Or maybe a warrior like me. You'll need real strength to survive as an adventurer."

  Prius, ever the calm one, added, "Let's not assume. We have a Crystal of Faith to determine his css." He held up a polished gem, swirling with magic. "This will reveal whether you're a physiagical type."

  Jazz grinned. "If it glows red, you're built for physical bat. Blue means you have magic potential. But…" She paused for dramatic effect. "If it turns violet, that means you're a rare type who use both magid strength."

  I took the crystal, feeling its weight in my palm. "So, I just hold it?"

  "Yeah, now focus," Ford instructed.

  The moment I did, the crystal pulsed—first glowihen shifting to blue before finally fring into a brilliant violet glow.

  Silence.

  Then—

  "WHAAAAAT?!"

  Jazz practically fell over, Ford's jaw dropped, and Prius actually blinked in surprise.

  "You have magic?!" Jazz gasped. "We did not expect that!"

  Ford cpped me on the back, ughing. "Guess we uimated you, little brother!"

  Jazz, never oo sit still, grabbed my wrist. "Alright, let's test this out! Try fog on your hand and imagine fire. If it gets warm, you're a fire mage like me."

  I did as she said, trating hard.

  …But instead of warmth, my ha cold.

  Jazz blinked. "Uh… that's new."

  Prius adjusted his gsses. "Fasating."

  Jazz, of course, was less diplomatic. "Pfft, maybe you're a defective mage!" She burst into ughter. "The best on against monsters is fire. Maybe you should just focus on being a warrior instead, hahaha!"

  I ched my fist, feeling the unfamiliar chill spreading through my fingers.

  Defective mage, huh?

  I had a feeling this was just the beginning.

  The Great Gobliermination Begins

  A week ter, ten parties from the Adventurer's Guild set off into the Forest of Goblins for the monthly extermination. We expected the usual goblis—nothing we couldn't handle.

  But what we found was much worse.

  Scattered throughout the trees were dozens of human hostages. Women and children, bound and terrified. The goblins had been growing too bold tely.

  The momeered, they attacked.

  "Alright, I just need five goblins, right?" I asked, gripping my sword.

  Before I could step forward, nearly a hundred goblins appeared, snarling and wielding crude ons.

  "Pffft, easy." Jazz grinned, crag her knuckles.

  Then the ground trembled. Moblins poured in. The horde surged to three hundred.

  "Okay," Ford muttered. "That's… a bit much."

  "No problem!" Jazz cackled. She raised her hands, magic swirling. "Inferno Wave!"

  A fiery explosioed across the battlefield, ing nearly half the goblins in an instant.

  "Hah! Nothi!" Jazz cheered.

  But something was left.

  I turned just in time to see myself surrouen goblins rushed me at once.

  My stomach growled. Damn it, not now. I had eaten nearly 50 kg of steak this past week, but the hunger ruly went away.

  The goblins leaped at me.

  I panicked—and suddenly, the air froze.

  The goblins, mid-air, were suddenly encased iheir bodies shattered upon hitting the ground.

  Silence.

  My siblings stared at me, wide-eyed.

  "W-Wait," Jazz stammered. "That wasn't fire. What magic was that?"

  I exhaled, watg the ist rise from my hands.

  "Freeze magic…?" Ford murmured.

  I just smiled. I remember now. Before I was sin, I wasn't just a zombie.

  I was a Lich.

  The Goblin Chief Appears

  The earth trembled. A massive shadow loomed.

  The Goblin Chief had arrived.

  T over us, it roared in fury, veins pulsing with unnatural strength.

  Jazz wasted no time. She hurled multi-fireballs at the monster. Fmes engulfed it, burning its flesh. It should've died.

  Instead, it stepped forward, ign half the damage.

  Then—it charged.

  Before I could react, its fist smmed into my chest.

  BOOM!

  I flew a mile away, crashing through trees. My ribs shattered, pain blinding my vision.

  "AUDI!"

  Prius rushed forward, hands glowing as he tried to heal me—only to scream in pain.

  "What?! My healing—it burns?!" He staggered back, his hands charred.

  I gritted my teeth. Does healing magic hurt me?

  No time to think.

  The Goblin Chief stood over me, cleaver raised.

  SHING!

  A fsh of steel.

  The Goblin Chief froze.

  Then, its body split in half.

  Ford stood behind it, his greatsword dripping with blood.

  "Hah," he smirked. "That was too easy."

  As the battle ehe adventurers looted the corpses, but no one wahe gobli. That meant I had the entire goblin chief to myself—and I was very satisfied.