Rowan would never admit it out loud, but he had learned a lot from the stupidest creatures in the world, the goblins.

  Thanks to their ‘self sacrificing natures’, the teenage boy had learned the effects of the various poisonous plants by just witnessing the destructive reactions it caused on the goblins' bodies. Ranging from mild stomach aches to spitting out blood, he had seen a lot. Some took a while for their effects to be seen. A goblin may have been fine one moment and then the next, they were running around screaming. He may not understand the goblin language, but their expressions were enough for him to tell what the plants did.

  Now that he knew what plants were poisonous, he just needed to know how to extract and apply it to his arrows.

  Whenever one of Rowan’s stalking trips came to a premature end, Rowan would return back to the camp and experiment. HIs trips always bought back plenty of herbs for him to test. Although the experimental process was Rowan just messing around with the plants as he figured out the best way of how to apply the poison. Some plants were simple, he was able to squeeze out the poisonous substance that could be later applied to an arrow. Another test method was to soak a plant in water for the rest of the day and then dip an arrow in the soaked liquid.

  As much as Rowan wanted to test the results of his experimentation right away, he was unable to in the camp since there were no monsters to test it on.

  That was fine since Rowan could test it on his next outing, he just needed to prepare the arrows.

  That was why Rowan had prepared three quivers, each filled with experimental poisoned arrows. The quivers were all personally handcrafted by Rowan, ensuring the poison didn’t leak through. This was only the first batch to be tested. There were other poisons to be tested, but Rowan wanted to let them fester a bit longer on their own. Who knows? Maybe leaving the poison alone might make it stronger? It wouldn’t be the strangest thing he saw in the forest.

  On this particular new day, Rowan waited in anticipation for the goblins to send out their patrol groups. He was eager to test out the new arrows and see their effectiveness. The quivers were strapped to his back,each one containing fifteen arrows. As Rowan paid attention to the area where the goblins usually emerged from, he noticed something different today.

  There were much more mana signatures than usual, including a few that stood out. A few of the mana signatures had more mana running through them compared to normal goblins. There was even one large mana signature in particular that stood out, more so than the others. This mana signature was notable due to the fact that the sheer quantity dwarfed all the other goblins. The size of it displayed a certain danger that Rowan typically avoided. It had been one of the mana signatures that he had sensed at the tunnel entrance when he investigated the other day and hoped to never meet it.

  Why did it decide to come out today?

  Not only were there more variety in goblins, they also began to travel in a single group. A difference from their normal routine. What made the goblin change their minds?

  Two voices debated in Rowan's mind. One of caution, stating that he should leave the goblins alone for today. There was no need for pointless risk, such as discovering the reason behind large mana source and the change in goblin behavior.

  The other voice was one of curiosity. It states Rowan should follow behind the group. It was a rare chance to see what sort of creature the different mana sources belong to. If the goblins came out in such a large group, then there must be a compelling reason. The goblins wouldn’t move such a large force for nothing. If the teenage boy could discover the reason, then maybe he could use it for himself. That would help him in his future forest endeavors.

  In the end, the voice of curiosity won out. The different mana sources were a cause for concern and it was best for him to know what kind of creatures he was dealing with. While discovering the cause of the mana signatures were important, the most important reason was greed.

  Even as a child, Rowan knew the Forest of Death was home to various special plants. It was said that if a person was to consume one of these special plants, it would bring a multitude of benefits to the body. Benefits such as increasing the lifespan by a hundred years, enlarging the mana pool, or even giving them special elemental affinities. There were so many different stories Rowan had heard as he grew up and he knew many of them were no doubt false. However the fact that just selling a few plants from the Forest of Death could earn a person a large sum of gold showed that the stories weren’t complete lies. There had to be some truth about the special plant otherwise the plants sold would not make such a killing. There was no other reason why people would risk their lives diving into the Forest of Death over and over again. The gold that could be earned was just that enticing.

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  Rowan was betting that the goblins knew about a special plant. There was no other explanation for such a large group.If there was another reason, then it was best for Rowan to know as early as possible so that he could plan for future risk. It was a win-win situation if Rowan went.

  That was unless he gets discovered by goblins midway through. In that case, Rowan’s life would come to a quick and bloody end. A scenario that he tried to avoid thinking about as much as possible.

  As Rowan made his way to the large goblin group, he finally caught a glimpse of one of the two new special mana signatures.

  It belonged to a goblin. The only difference was that this goblin was bigger, tougher and meaner looking compared to a regular goblin. If a typical goblin was the size of an eight year old, then this one was the size of a human teenager, almost matching Rowan’s height. There was one more distinct feature, the goblin wore armor. Not one of metal, but one of wood that was kept together by a vine.

  The name of the goblin popped in Rowans mind.

  Hobgoblins.

  The next level of goblins. Typically stronger and more vicious than a regular goblin, according to the stories. Judging by the mana signature, Rowan said that was a fair assessment,

  Seeing the wooden armor gave Rowan some ideas that he wanted to test out, but he withheld the urge and kept himself hidden. Now was not the time and he wanted to see the other creature responsible for the large mana signature.

  Rowan soon located the second special mana signature. It also belonged to a goblin, but this one was dressed in a peculiar manner. It wasn’t as tall as a hobgoblin and it wore a monster skull over its face. A wolf pelt covered its body and it carried its own wooden staff. As Rowan observed the special monster, this specific goblin suddenly stopped and stared at Rowan’s direction.

  The sudden movement caused chills to run down Rowan's spine as he immediately held his breath and hid as closely behind a tree.

  Seeing the large mana pool in the goblin, Rowan tried to recall the name.

  Goblin wizard…no, that didn’t sound right. Oh right, goblin shaman. That what the name was,

  Hobgoblins and a shaman. Rowan remembers hearing stories about these monsters and never in a positive light. It would take a squad of trained knights to fight a goblin group as large as this, especially with these special variants. There were twenty typical goblins, three hobgoblins and one shaman. A large group to be feared by anyone that were unlucky enough to face them.

  Seeing that there was nothing there, the goblin shaman turned around and resumed walking. Letting out a breath of relief, Rowan continued to follow the group. Only this time he increased the distance between them. The other goblins show no indication that they sensed the human stalking them.

  The goblin traveled for half a day and began to approach an area that Rowan had never been to. He had been meaning to visit this location as it was on the border of his mana detection ability, but he had been quite busy with learning and experimenting with poisons these days. As he followed the goblin group from a distance, an ominous feeling came over him.

  The same kind of feeling when he had entered the flower field.

  After learning his lesson, Rowan began to cautiously look around. The ominous feeling could not have come out of nowhere, he just needed to pinpoint the reason why. His instincts recognize the signs of danger before his brain, but he needed his brain to figure out how to deal with the danger.

  It took a few minutes for Rowan to recognize what was wrong.

  Everything in the area was still. There were no animal sounds, no wind, and no leaves rustling. It was unnatural and gave Rowan goosebumps. As Rowan edged closer to the surrounding trees, he realized what was wrong with the vegetation in the area.

  All the trees were dead.

  What he was currently seeing was just an empty husk of a tree that was once alive. Whatever place they had walked into, it was the territory of something dangerous. Monsters avoided this place just like the flowerfield due the deadly beings that resided there.

  As Rowan recognized the reason behind the strange occurrence, one question came to mind.

  Did the goblins know about the dangerous being in this place? If so, why did they come here?

  The goblins group confidently kept on walking, only the smaller goblins' facial expression becoming more nervous with each step.

  The goblin shaman led the way and only stopped in front of a particular tree. The bark was dark brown and it gave off a sinister feeling. Its numerous branches that were empty of leaves drooped like claws, ready for prey. The ominous feeling within Rowan grew stronger at the sight of the tree.

  As much as Rowan wanted to run now, he couldn’t. Not having followed the goblins so far without finding the cause behind their purpose.

  The shaman goblin stepped up and began chanting. A gurgling and crackling voice emitted through the surrounding. All goblins stood in place as they waited for the shaman to finish. After five minutes of chanting, the shaman waved its staff and motioned one of the goblins to come forward. Nervously the goblin obeyed and took a step

  Rowan's eyes widened in horror at what happened next.

  The tree branches suddenly came to life and pierced through the goblin. An agonizing scream of horror and pain rippled through the air as hundreds of wooden tendrons stabbed the little green monster's body.

  The most horrifying part? The goblin was still alive despite all the injuries and howling in pain.

  The flailing goblin was slowly brought closer to the tree trunk where it split open. The goblin was tossed in and the trunk closed the gap.

  The screams of the goblin finally stopped as blood slowly dripped down from the tree trunk.