The dust cloud slowly began to settle.
For several seconds, Arin and Kael could see nothing but drifting gray particles swirling through the air.
Then the wind pushed the dust away.
What it revealed made both of them freeze.
Where the goblins had been standing moments ago… there was now a massive crater.
The rocky ground had been blown apart like glass struck by a hammer. Broken stone and shattered earth spread outward in a wide circle.
But the ground wasn't the worst part.
The bodies were.
Or what remained of them.
Blood covered the stones in thick dark patches. Pieces of flesh and bone were scattered everywhere.
A severed arm lay several meters away from the crater.
Half of a goblin's head rested against a rock, its single remaining eye staring blankly into the sky.
Something wet slid down the inside of Kael's throat.
He swallowed hard.
"…Holy… shit."
Arin didn't respond.
His eyes were locked on the center of the crater.
The goblin that had fired the revolver… wasn't really a goblin anymore.
It was paste.
There was barely anything recognizable left of its body. Red and green mush coated the cracked stone beneath it.
Kael slowly turned his head.
"…Did we just do that?"
Arin spoke quietly.
"…Apparently."
A weak noise suddenly came from the edge of the crater.
Both of them turned instantly.
One goblin was still alive.
Or at least… half of it was.
The creature had been torn completely in half at the waist. Its lower body was gone, leaving only its upper torso and arms.
It dragged itself slowly across the ground.
Its fingers clawed at the dirt as it crawled toward them.
A wet trail followed behind it.
Kael's face turned pale.
"…Oh no."
The goblin reached forward one last time.
Then its body collapsed.
It stopped moving.
Silence fell over the rocky field again.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
The wind shifted.
And then the smell hit them.
It was unbearable.
Blood.
Burned flesh.
And something worse.
The goblins had apparently lost control of their bodies when the explosion happened. The stench of shit and piss mixed with the metallic smell of blood until the air itself felt poisonous.
Kael gagged.
"Oh god—"
He turned away quickly, covering his mouth.
Arin pressed a hand against his nose, trying to breathe through his sleeve.
Even he looked slightly pale now.
Neither of them had ever seen anything like this before.
Kael forced himself to take slow breaths.
"Okay," he muttered weakly. "Okay… I'm fine."
He was not fine.
Arin carefully held his breath before speaking.
"…Next time," he said slowly, "we do not throw explosive guns at monsters."
Kael glanced at him.
"YOU threw it!"
"You said the bullet looked funny."
"Funny doesn't mean nuclear!"
Arin rubbed his temples.
"…Fair point."
Kael looked back at the crater again.
"…That was one bullet."
Arin nodded.
"Yes."
They both stared at the destruction for a moment longer.
Then Arin slowly turned toward Kael.
"So… what exactly is the power you chose?"
Kael straightened slightly.
"Eidolon."
Arin frowned.
"…What?"
Kael grinned proudly.
"Eidolon. Manifestation of thoughts."
Arin blinked.
"Wait… wait… wait."
He stared at Kael.
"So you're telling me… you don't actually have a gun power?"
Kael shrugged.
"Apparently not."
Arin looked confused.
"Then what does it do?"
Kael scratched the back of his head.
"Well… I think it means things I imagine can become real."
Arin stared at him.
"…You think?"
Kael avoided eye contact and started whistling.
No sound came out.
"…Did you read the pros and cons of the power?"
Kael kept staring at the sky.
"…No."
Arin slowly closed his eyes.
"Kael."
"It looked cool."
"So you picked it."
"Yes."
Arin took a long breath.
"…Of course you did."
Suddenly Kael snapped his fingers.
"Wait!"
Arin looked at him.
"We can check it right now."
"How?"
Kael looked excited.
"Maybe we have a status window!"
Arin stared at him.
"…Don't tell me you think that actually works."
Kael froze.
"…It doesn't?"
Arin sighed.
"I already tried."
Kael immediately started shouting at the air.
"Status!"
Nothing happened.
"Window!"
Silence.
"Panel!"
Still nothing.
"Open sesame!"
The rocky wasteland remained completely quiet.
Kael slowly lowered his hands.
"…Well that's disappointing."
Arin looked slightly embarrassed.
"…I also tried those earlier."
Kael stared at him.
Then both of them burst out laughing.
After a moment, Kael wiped a tear from his eye.
"So… how do we figure out how my power works?"
Arin looked around the rocky wasteland.
"Maybe we learn by using it."
Kael nodded slowly.
"And how do we do that?"
Arin turned and began walking away from the crater.
"First," he said calmly, "we leave this place before the smell kills us."
Kael quickly followed him.
"And then?"
Arin glanced toward the distant rocky hills.
"We explore."
"Somewhere on this floor…"
"…we'll figure it out."
They began heading toward the rocky hills in the distance.
After a moment, Arin spoke again.
"Well… your imagination might actually be our biggest enemy."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
Arin glanced at him.
"You imagined a gun that exploded."
Kael laughed.
"Well technically…"
"I imagined a gun with exploding bullets."
He scratched his head.
"But the bullet exploded inside the gun."
"Hahaha."
Arin shook his head slowly.
"…That explains a lot."
Then Kael suddenly stopped laughing.
He squinted toward the horizon.
"…Uh, Arin?"
Arin looked up.
In the distance—
Several figures were walking toward them.
Human silhouettes.
Climbers.
End of chapter
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