Chapter 20 My Sut-sized Goblin Brain Struggled to Comprehend the Beauty Before Me

The moment I ducked into the mud, the cat-girl, now fully transformed and armed with her polished steel rapier, stood fearlessly before the towering Flesh Golem. Her sharp eyes, glowing faintly in the darkened forest, flicked over the monstrous mass of gore, assessing it with a predator's instinct. The Golem, an abomination of severed limbs and rotting flesh, took notice of her, its heavy, disjointed body heaving with every sluggish step as it turned to face her.

For a moment, the forest was still - just the low squelching sound of the Golem's feet sinking into the mud and the quiet tension of the cat-girl’s coiled muscles. Then, in a blur of motion, she launched herself forward.

She moved faster than my eyes could follow. One second she was standing still, and the next, she was a dark streak slicing through the air, her rapier gleaming as it caught what little light filtered through the trees. The blade slashed across the Golem's grotesque form, severing one of its many dangling limbs with a clean stroke. Blackened blood sprayed from the creature, but it barely reacted - its grotesque bulk shifting slightly, as though only now realizing it had been attacked.

The Flesh Golem groaned - a deep, guttural sound - and swung one of its massive, corpse-laden arms in her direction. But it was slow, far too slow to match the cat-girl’s speed. She dodged effortlessly, darting to the side with a fluid grace that left Golem's arm crashing into the dirt, sending up a spray of mud and rotting flesh.

Without missing a beat, she darted in again, her rapier flashing in rapid, precise strikes. Each slash severed more pieces of Golem's bloated, decaying body, slicing through layers of congealed blood and festering skin. But the monster, though slow, was relentless - it lumbered after her, dragging its massive bulk forward with sickening squelching sounds.

Her movements were swift and precise, each strike aimed at weakening the creature, but she wasn’t just hacking away mindlessly. She was searching for something. 

Flesh Golem, however, wasn't going down easily. With a roar like a thousand voices trapped in its decaying mass, it lashed out again, this time with a wide, sweeping strike. She leaped into the air, flipping gracefully as Golem’s massive arm passed beneath her, but the force of the swing sent a gust of foul-smelling wind through the trees, making me gag in the mud below.

She landed with feline agility, her legs barely bending to absorb the impact, and immediately dashed toward Golem’s flank. Her rapier lashed out again, piercing deep into Golem's side. But instead of blood, a torrent of black sludge poured out, followed by the stench of rotting entrails. She barely flinched, pulling her blade free and leaping back to avoid the mess.

Golem was weakening. Its hulking frame, once towering and menacing, was starting to sag, pieces of it sloughing off in chunks. But it wasn’t defeated yet. The monstrous creature raised its arms for another desperate swing, but this time, she was ready.

With a burst of speed, she dashed forward, ducking under Golem's arm as it crashed down behind her. Her eyes gleamed as she spotted it - a faint, pulsing glow deep within Golem’s chest, hidden beneath layers of decaying flesh. The core.

She leaped onto Golem’s bloated body, climbing it with astonishing speed. Her claws dug into its decaying mass as she scaled its chest, her rapier held tightly in her hand. Golem howled, swaying from side to side in an attempt to shake her off, but she held firm.

Then, with a ferocious cry, she drove the rapier straight into the core. The polished steel blade pierced through the rotten flesh, and for a moment, everything went still.

 Golem let out a final, gurgling moan as the core cracked, a sound like shattering glass echoing through the forest. Black, oozing blood poured from the wound, and Golem’s massive frame began to collapse in on itself. The cat girl leaped off the creature just in time, landing in a crouch as Golem crumbled into a pile of gore and dismembered limbs.

Panting, but triumphant, she stood over the remains of Flesh Golem, her rapier still gleaming in the fading light. The forest was silent once more, save for the quiet drip of blood.

I remained hidden in the mud, my heart still pounding from the terror of the encounter, but I couldn't tear my eyes away from her - this mysterious, beautiful, deadly cat-girl who had saved me from certain death.

I cowered in the wet mud, my body trembling as I peered up at the cat-girl. But this time, it wasn’t fear that gripped me. No, this was something different - something I had never felt before. My nut-sized goblin brain struggled to comprehend the beauty before me, so pure and mesmerizing that it left me frozen in place, not from terror for once, but from utter amazement and fascination.

The way she stood, victorious over the monstrous Flesh Golem, was like nothing I had ever seen in my short, pitiful life. Her sleek, muscular body, adorned in slim leather armor, seemed to glow in the dim forest light. Her sharp, feline eyes gleamed like polished gemstones, and her black hair with those delicate white dots shimmered with a soft, almost otherworldly light. She was the most beautiful creature I had ever laid eyes on.

My mouth hung open, my eyes wide, unable to tear themselves away from her graceful form. I watched in awe as she swiped her polished rapier to the side, shaking the blood and gore of the fallen beast from its shining blade. She then calmly slid the weapon back into its place on her belt.

Her eyes, sharp and focused, shifted towards me. I thought I would feel fear, but instead, my heart pounded in my chest, a strange heat rising in my cheeks. Slowly, deliberately, she began to walk toward me, her steps light and elegant, as if she barely touched the ground. My body remained rooted in the mud, trembling from head to toe, but not in the same way it usually did. This time, it was awe.

My chest tightened with something I couldn’t name, and my filthy goblin skin prickled as she approached. My hands dug deeper into the mud as if trying to find some grounding, but nothing could anchor me in the storm of awe that raged within me.

She stopped, towering over me as I kneeled in the muck, her shadow casting a cool darkness over my shaking form. My eyes trailed from the tips of her boots, up her sleek body, to her face. I was nothing - a dirty, broken goblin, covered in filth and grime. But she was magnificent. My brain barely registered anything but her as she stood there, looking down at me with those sharp, glowing eyes.

I tried to speak, but no words came out. I was too ecstatic, too overwhelmed by the sheer presence of her. All I could do was stare, mouth agape, as the cat-girl who had saved me regarded me with a mixture of curiosity and... perhaps amusement.

The cat-girl, standing over me with a playful grin, cocked her head to the side and began speaking in a melodic, sing-song tone, her words completely foreign to my ears.

“Nyah’nir shasri, naava’ek ka’aa? Hrrr... ki’shii raak na’mi, meowka riiyashi?” she asked, her feline eyes glinting with amusement as she gestured to the fallen Flesh Golem, then back to me as if expecting a response.

I blinked, utterly dumbfounded, unable to comprehend her words. My goblin brain struggled to process anything beyond her beauty. Seeing my blank stare, she let out a soft, amused chuckle. She pondered for a moment, scratching behind one of her ears in a way that was both adorable and casual, before trying again. This time, she attempted to mimic the goblin tongue.

“Cliiik... crrchh... urgh, uh... re’kkta cha... pff - nah, that’s not right!” she said, her face scrunching in exaggerated concentration. The way she butchered the sounds was oddly endearing like she was playing with me, her lips curling up in a crooked grin as she tried again.

“Cliik click-tchak... are yuu... chirp... okay? Did big ug... hurt?” Her attempt at goblin speech was ridiculous, but her effort was strangely touching. I could only stare at her in mute awe, my mind barely able to process her words, let alone respond.

Realizing her goblin wasn’t getting through, she sighed dramatically and shifted into the common tongue - the language of adventurers and humans, her tone still light and teasing.

 “Okay, okay... goblin talk is tough, huh? How about this: are you hurt, little green? Well, you look more like a slime with that mud on you. Or just paralyzed by my stunning presence?”

Her voice was like velvet - smooth, yet with a teasing bite that carried no malice, only amusement. She raised an eyebrow, clearly expecting some kind of response. But I was too far gone. Too mesmerized by her graceful movements, her melodic voice, and the way her sleek armor hugged her curvy form perfectly. I was a goblin slave, unworthy of even looking at someone like her, and yet she knelt beside me like we were equals.

Seeing that I still hadn’t moved, she let out a small, playful sigh before leaning down closer. Her warm, soft hand gently reached out and closed my gaping mouth with the barest touch. It was the first time in my miserable life I had felt a touch that wasn’t harsh or cruel other than Kaka's. Her fingers were delicate, her touch so light it sent a shiver through my body.

“Careful, drooly - flies’ll start nesting in there,” she teased softly, her voice warm with sarcasm.

As her hand lingered on my chin, my body reacted in a way I didn’t understand. I convulsed slightly, but not from pain, like I was used to. No, this was something different. The sensation was unfamiliar, almost pleasurable, and it sent a strange warmth through me. I felt a twitch in my lower body, and before I could stop it, a trickle of warm liquid oozed from my egg-laying straw.

The cat-girl tilted her head, her sharp eyes softening as she looked at my trembling form. Still crouched beside me, she wiped her hand on her leather armor with a playful grin, seemingly creeped out by my embarrassing reaction. Her tail flicked lazily from side to side, the swishing motion almost hypnotic, while a playful grin crept across her face.

“Oh, come on,” she teased.

 “You goblins are all the same. You see a pretty face, and suddenly you think it’s time to breed, huh? Ew. Gross.”

 She paused, giving me a once-over as she’d just found something sticky on the bottom of her shoe. Her grin only widened as she stepped back, watching me squirm.

“Honestly, what a creep. At least get me some catnip first.” 

She rolled her eyes, her sarcasm as sharp as the polished rapier at her side. Despite the playful bite to her words, there was no real malice in her voice, just that mischievous charm she carried so easily.