My Goblin System : Levelling up with my SSS Class Devouring skill Chapter 409

"Father," he thought as darkness closed in. "I avenged you."

But then he heard voices. Settlent voices.

"GRUK’S DOWN! GET A HEALER!"

Jessica was running toward him, her healing magic already manifesting. Behind her, two orc warriors were clearing a path through combat.

"Stay with , Gruk!" Jessica commanded, her hands glowing with healing power. "Don’t you dare die!"

"I... killed him," Gruk managed weakly. "Avenged... father..."

"Yes, you did. You honored Urgak. Now let save you!" Her healing magic poured into his pierced heart, forcing the organ to keep beating, flooding his system with life-sustaining energy.

The healing was barely enough. Gruk’s heart wound was mortal. But Jessica was the settlent’s best healer, and she channeled every ounce of power she had.

"Breathe! Fight! Your father wouldn’t want you dying after you’ve won!" she shouted at him.

Gruk’s orc constitution responded to the healing magic. His massive body clung to life with stubborn determination.

He survived. Barely.

Northern Sector Duel Result:

Commander Deren: KILLED (skull split by Gruk’s final axe blow)Gruk: SURVIVED but critically wounded (heart pierced, saved by Jessica’s imdiate healing)Tactical result: Settlent gains morale from Gruk’s survival, but loses Urgak

Jessica continued healing Gruk as orc warriors carried him away from the frontline, protecting their young champion who’d avenged his father’s death.

Eastern Forward Position: Captain Hollis vs. Thrak

Captain Hollis was a tactical specialist—a commander trained in adaptive warfare and improvisation. At thirty-eight years old, he’d fought in eleven campaigns across varied terrain and situations.

He faced Thrak—the demon engineer who’d built Third Line’s fortifications, designed the corruption pitfall trap, and now stood with improvised weapons because he’d never been trained as a warrior.

Thrak held a large hamr in one hand and a heavy pry bar in the other—construction tools turned deadly weapons. His demon strength made even non-combat tools dangerous.

They engaged.

Hollis’s swordsmanship was textbook excellent—Academy training applied with years of practical experience. His blade moved in precise patterns, targeting vulnerable areas with surgical precision.

Thrak’s fighting style was pure improvisation. The hamr swung like a construction tool, not a weapon—wide arcs designed to break stone now aid at breaking bones. The pry bar thrust and blocked, a lever bar now serving as defensive weapon.

Hollis scored first blood—his sword catching Thrak’s arm, cutting deep.

Thrak’s counter-strike with the hamr was slower, more telegraphed. Hollis dodged easily.

"You can’t beat ," Hollis said, not mocking but stating tactical fact. "Every exchange, you’re losing. I’m faster, better trained, more experienced. Surrender."

"No." Thrak shifted his grip on the hamr. "But I can make you work for it."

The demon engineer changed tactics. Instead of fighting Hollis directly, he started using his tools to manipulate the environnt.

The pry bar jabbed into a weakened wall section, leveraging stones loose. They fell, creating obstacles Hollis had to navigate.

The hamr struck the ground, cracking paving stones, creating uneven footing.

Thrak was turning the battlefield itself into a weapon, using his engineering knowledge to create hazards.

Hollis recognized the tactic and adapted. He pressed the attack harder, trying to end the fight before Thrak could create too many environntal complications.

His sword struck Thrak’s shoulder, opening another wound.

Thrak’s hamr caught Hollis’s shield, denting the tal with supernatural strength.

They circled through debris-strewn ground, both fighters now bleeding, both adapting constantly.

Hollis feinted high, then cut low, a classic misdirection.

Thrak fell for it, his pry bar blocking high while Hollis’s sword cut his leg.

The demon engineer stumbled but didn’t fall. His hamr swung in desperation, aid at Hollis’s head.

Hollis ducked, the hamr missing. His counter-strike aid for Thrak’s heart—a killing blow.

But Thrak’s pry bar ca across, not blocking but deflecting, using leverage to redirect the sword thrust away from vital organs. The blade still struck, cutting Thrak’s side, but not fatally.

"Clever," Hollis acknowledged. "Using tool leverage instead of weapon blocking. You’re adapting faster than expected."

"I build things for a living," Thrak replied through pain. "Adaptation is engineering’s core principle."

They engaged again, and now Thrak was fighting with pure desperation, knowing he was outmatched but refusing to yield.

His hamr struck Hollis’s knee—a crushing blow that cracked bone. Hollis scread and fell to one knee, his mobility suddenly compromised.

Thrak pressed the advantage, his pry bar swinging at the fallen human’s head.

Hollis blocked with his sword, the impact sending shockwaves through both weapons.

From his kneeling position, Hollis lunged upward, his sword aid at Thrak’s throat.

The blade struck true, cutting deep into demon flesh, opening Thrak’s throat partially.

Thrak gurgled blood but didn’t fall. His hands dropped his tools and grabbed Hollis instead, demon strength crushing.

They grappled, Hollis trying to pull his sword free for a finishing strike, Thrak trying to use demon strength to crush the human before he bled out.

Hollis’s sword twisted in Thrak’s throat, cutting deeper, blood pouring.

Thrak’s hands found Hollis’s throat, squeezing with desperate strength.

They fell together, locked in mutual death grip.

Hollis’s sword pierced Thrak’s heart from the throat wound angle.

Thrak’s hands crushed Hollis’s windpipe before demon strength failed.

Both died within seconds—Thrak from heart pierced by throat wound, Hollis from crushed throat and suffocation.

Eastern Forward Position Duel Result:

Captain Hollis: KILLED (throat crushed)Thrak: KILLED (heart pierced via throat wound)Mutual elimination through simultaneous killing techniques

Settlent defenders who’d worked with Thrak—who’d helped build fortifications under his direction, who’d learned engineering from the demon—scread grief and rage.

The demon engineer had died protecting the fortifications he’d built.

It was tragedy and honor combined.

Beyond the major commander duels, smaller but equally fierce battles erupted as settlent nad fighters engaged human officers and elite soldiers.

Tarak—the veteran goblin who’d survived eight previous battles faced Sergeant Kelvan, a human veteran with fifteen years’ experience.

The battle was fought in a collapsed building’s rubble, both fighters using terrain for advantage.

Tarak’s guerrilla tactics served him well initially. He used his agility to strike from unexpected angles, his blade cutting Kelvan’s arm, then disappearing into rubble before the sergeant could counter.