My Goblin System : Levelling up with my SSS Class Devouring skill-Chapter 324

Too quiet. Too convenient. Too much like walking into a mouth that was about to snap shut.

But they’d committed now. Forward was the only option.

Satou led them through the storage room toward the servant’s staircase in the northwest corner. The narrow spiral stairs rose into darkness above—eighteen steps total, fifth step creaky on the right side, all exactly as described.

No opposition. No traps. Nothing.

They climbed in tense silence, weapons ready, every sense straining for the first hint of attack. But the stairs were clear, and they emerged onto the second floor without incident.

The corridor between bookshelves stretched ahead—the western section of the restricted library, exactly as mapped. Tall shelves packed with ancient legal texts created a maze of shadows and narrow passages. Perfect terrain for ambush.

Still no opposition.

"This is wrong," Cassius whispered, his vampire senses detecting something Satou and Sylvara couldn’t quite identify. "Where is everyone? If they’re preparing an ambush, where are the ambushers?"

"Waiting," Satou replied grimly, moving forward cautiously. "Letting us get close before springing the trap. They want us committed, want us deep enough that escape becomes impossible."

They advanced through the corridor, checking each intersection carefully. Forty feet to the small study alcove, then fifteen feet of open floor to Richard’s usual position. Every step took them deeper into the trap, every foot of progress made retreat more difficult.

They reached the study alcove—four chairs, a reading table, deep shadows perfect for concealment. And from here, they could see into the main restricted library section.

What they saw made all three of them freeze in place, weapons raised, minds processing the tactical nightmare before them.

Richard Clay sat at his table in the northeast corner, exactly as described. Scholar’s robes, reading by candlelight, sword leaning against the table within easy reach. He looked calm, relaxed, completely at ease. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

But he wasn’t alone.

Shadows moved throughout the restricted section. Figures concealed in darkness, positioned in corners and alcoves, standing utterly still and silent like predators waiting for prey to wander into range. Satou’s enhanced Dark Vision let him see them despite the concealment—he counted quickly, tactical assessment automatic.

Forty. Maybe more hidden in blind spots. All professional fighters based on their positioning discipline. All waiting with the patient stillness of people who’d been ordered to hold position no matter how long it took.

And Richard sat in the center of it all, calmly reading, completely aware of their presence.

He’d been waiting for them.

The trap was sprung.

For a long, frozen moment, nobody moved. The tableau held like a painting: Richard at his table, forty hidden fighters positioned throughout the library, Satou and his companions at the edge of the killing zone, all of them aware of each other but nobody making the first move.

It was Richard who broke the silence.

"Do you know how long I’ve been waiting?"

His voice was conversational, almost pleasant, carrying the tone of someone making small talk rather than facing down assassins. He didn’t look up from his book, instead turning a page with deliberate leisureliness as if he had all the time in the world and wasn’t particularly concerned about the weapons currently aimed at him.

"Three days. Three full days sitting in this library, reading these absolutely tedious texts about temporal magic theory that I mastered two centuries ago, pretending to research while actually just... waiting." Another page turned. "Waiting for the rat’s masters to finally show themselves. Waiting to see who was bold enough or foolish enough to actually attempt to hunt me in human territory."

Richard closed the book slowly, the sound of pages settling together echoing in the silent library with unusual clarity. His movements remained unhurried, completely controlled, a man operating according to his own timeline rather than reacting to external pressure.

"I noticed your spy, you know." He still didn’t look at them, instead running his fingers over the book’s leather cover with what almost seemed like affection. "The ’city guard’ who watched just a bit too carefully. Who asked just a few too many questions about monastery schedules and security. Who happened to show up for duty exactly when security was increased due to demon sightings in the region."

He set the book aside carefully, positioning it exactly parallel to the edge of the table with the kind of precision that spoke to three centuries of ingrained habits.

"Very subtle. Almost professional. If I hadn’t been specifically alert for surveillance, I might have missed it entirely. But I’ve been hunted before—dozens of times. I know what it looks like when someone is gathering intelligence rather than simply performing their duties. Your vampire friend was good, but not quite good enough to fool someone with my experience."

Richard stood now, his movements still unhurried and graceful despite being in his late forties physically. Centuries of martial training showed in his posture—balanced, centered, ready to move in any direction instantly despite appearing relaxed.

"I could have killed him immediately, of course." Richard’s tone was almost contemplative. "One word to Chronus about an enemy spy in the city guard. One temporal pulse to age him to dust. Would have been simple, efficient, eliminated the threat before it could develop. But that would have been... unsatisfying."

He began walking forward slowly, still not looking directly at where Satou and his companions hid in the shadows.

"Because killing the spy wouldn’t tell me who sent him. Wouldn’t reveal who was orchestrating this hunt. Wouldn’t give me the opportunity to turn the tables completely and transform from prey to predator. So I made a different choice. I let him watch. Let him gather his precious intelligence. Let him report back to his masters with detailed information about my routines and vulnerabilities."

Richard’s smile was cold, predatory, the expression of someone who’d turned what should have been their weakness into advantage.

"All the while, I was preparing this.Setting up the perfect ambush for whoever was foolish enough to actually attempt the assassination."

He gestured around at the forty concealed fighters, the movement encompassing the entire prepared killing zone.

"And now you’re here, walking right into my trap like the predictable creatures you are. Using the exact approach route your spy had identified. Following the exact plan you thought was so clever. All of it proceeding exactly as I predicted, exactly as I prepared for."

Richard finally stopped walking and turned to face their direction directly. His eyes scanned the shadows where they hid.

"Hidden in the darkness like the rats you are. Using stealth and concealment like it will actually protect you from what’s coming. Thinking your careful planning and clever tactics will be enough to—"

He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening as they finally focused on Satou clearly enough to recognize him. For a moment, Richard’s composed mask cracked completely, shock and recognition and disbelief warring for dominance in his expression.

"...You."

The single word came out barely above a whisper, but it carried the weight of months of accumulated hatred, humiliation, and rage. Richard’s hand moved unconsciously to the hilt of his sword, gripping it hard enough that his knuckles went white.

"The goblin. The GOBLIN who humiliated me." His voice was rising now, control slipping as emotion bled through. "You. Who defeated me in front of Chronus. Who disgraced me before the other demon lords. Who stood over me with your blade at my throat while they all watched and saw me lose to some upstart monster barely out of infancy."

Richard’s other hand clenched into a fist, temporal energy beginning to flicker around his fingers as his power responded to his emotional state.

"Do you have any idea what that did to me? To my reputation? To my standing among the demon lords?" His volume increased further. "I’ve lived for years! I’ve served Chronus since before most current demon lords were even born! I was renowned as one of the greatest temporal warriors in existence! And then YOU—some goblin mongrel, some insignificant creature who should have died screaming in his first real fight—YOU defeated me in front of Chronus and other demon lords.!"

Richard was nearly shouting now, decades of careful control and dignified composure burning away in the face of remembered humiliation.

"They laughed at me. The other demon lords, they laughed. Called me weak. Called me outdated. Questioned whether the Second Seat still deserved their position if half of Chronus could be defeated so easily. The dishonor, the shame, the absolute degradation of having my hundred years reputation destroyed in a single fight!"

He drew his sword, the blade shimmering with temporal energy as his magic infused the weapon. The metal seemed to exist in multiple states simultaneously—solid and ethereal, present and future, the visual distortion making it difficult to look at directly.\

"I’ve dreamed of this moment," Richard said, and now his voice carried something almost feverish, obsessive. "Every night since that fight, I’ve imagined what I would do when I found you. The pain I would inflict. The humiliation I would return tenfold. The satisfaction of watching you die slowly while I described in detail exactly how I was going to mutilate your corpse and display it as proof of my restored honor."