Close Combat

Cold sweat appeared on his temples, slowly running down his cheeks, as he took in the sight of more than 40 objects pointed directly at him. No matter how he looked at the scene, it was clear that this monster had no intention of holding back.

A lump formed in his throat as he gulped down his saliva, his mind racing with thoughts of survival. He looked around frantically, searching for anything that could help him in this dire situation. However, as the reality of the danger he was facing sunk in, he quickly shook his head, his face contorting into a grimace of despair.

The Goblin Sorcerer could summon all the objects at any moment, and the thought of being impaled by the arsenal made him shudder. He couldn't shake the scenario from his mind, and the fear of what might happen next was overwhelming.

Arsen was dumbfounded as he stared at the monster, asking himself, "What should I do?" He knew that despite his advantage in speed, it wouldn't be enough to avoid all the weapons at once. He was at a loss for a plan.

The idea of running away kept striking Arsen's mind. If he couldn't win against the monster, there was no point in continuing the battle. While he knew the monster might drop valuable items, he couldn't afford to die right now. However, the thought of giving up without a fight left a bitter taste in his mouth, and he struggled to decide whether to stay and fight or flee for his life.

There were two reasons why he can't afford to die right now. First, if he died in this place, this could be a reason for him to be left behind by the other players. At this stage of this game, losing a level or item could cripple their characters. Though, these players could recover their levels or items due to grinding, still, they could not cherish the advantage given by the high-level maps, advanced cities, etc. This was why all the advanced players, remained advanced. Unless the left-behind players made a fortune. The second reason was, Arsen was still coping with the $500 he spent to buy this console.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

And all of a sudden, the atmosphere was getting heavier, at the same time, he could hear the keen sound nimbly coming at him.

"I can't do this." Alas, Arsen made up his mind to run away from this monster. "I already saved the Alchemist. If this goblin tried to kill more NPCs, I could ask the Mayor for assistance."

Well, having assistance from the Mayor was the best thing to have. Why? As far as what he knew from the orientation, NPCs were one of the strongest creatures in this world, so he believed the goblin sorcerer was just an ant for them.

Swoosh!

Without a second thought, he shifted his direction. However, when he was about to leave the camp, suddenly, a yell from a woman resounded in his ears.

Let me go!

Arsen paused for a second as he was fully familiarized with the voice that was perceived by his ears. "Don't tell me?" His eyes widened after seeing the Alchemist in this camp once again. "What are you going here?! I said run away!"

At this point, it was hard to show that he was not frustrated by the situation. In his mind, he can't now leave this camp, otherwise, he would fail the quest.

"I'm sorry! I tried to run away but these monsters are fast... Stop thinking about me, just run!"

At this juncture, the Alchemist had a good grasp of the situation. She had had the chance to escape from the monsters, but unfortunately, she failed to do so. However, no one could hardly blame her for it. Firstly, she was not particularly athletic, which meant she wasn't fast enough to outrun the monsters. Her strengths lay in her intelligence rather than her physical abilities. The second reason was that the alchemist's body was covered in severe wounds, and the smell of blood permeated the area. Given that the goblins and corrupted animals had highly sensitive senses, it wouldn't be challenging for them to track her down.

"Why should I do that?" Arsen refused in a high tone and could only barely close his eyes as he can't afford to hear this woman screaming in agonizing pain.

To describe it, the goblins' dark nails where they could see the soil in it, slowly pierced her skin while the other goblins were licking her body, of course, it was for pleasure. Aside from that, the corrupted animals nearby seemed to crush her bones. Luckily, the goblin sorcerer stepped forward and intervened with them.

"No one should touch her; otherwise, you'd be courting death," the goblin sorcerer said in a deep tone, before turning its gaze towards the stupefied human. "Since you've made it this far, it's better that you know who will kill you. I'm Hanz, the ruler of this forest!"

As the creature evilly laughed and gradually removed its hood, Arsen noticed a name appearing over the creature's head. However, he didn't pay much attention to it, as he knew that Hanz was about to release the flying objects.

At this juncture, Arsen was only sure of one thing: these monsters had no intention of killing the alchemist at the moment. It was a good thing for him, to be honest, as it lessened the burden. However, he couldn't eliminate the chance that these monsters would kill the alchemist once the situation got critical.

Despite that, Arsen can't still leave this place as his main goal right now was to save the alchemist. Otherwise, he would fail the quest. Yes, he was desperate.

"This creature is right, I already reached this far. Running away is out of the option." He paused for a second and looked at the monster for the last time. And all of a sudden, a new idea appeared inside his head. "Can I use that?"

The Blink was the only thing he had, though, he had no idea if this skill could avoid all the objects. Of course, it came to his mind to utilize the Perfect Block. However, it can only block three attacks, meaning he would just die later on.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

All of a sudden, the goblin sorcerer immediately released all the flying objects at once. Hmm... It was the cue for Arsen to move his feet and dash forward toward the monster.

Swoosh!

Arsen ran for exactly seven meters before leaving an after-image at the location where he paused without a second.

-17 -18 -23

These numbers occurred above his head, showing the precise damage he received. A solid rock hit his chest and two arrows stabbed his shoulders. As a result, he coughed some blood out of his mouth. Despite that, Arsen continued to charge as he was well informed this creature's power was focused on its intelligence due to the advanced magic spell it was using, meaning he would have the advantage in close combat.

The name Blink appeared on his screen as he cast the skill to teleport to the opposite side of the monster once again. As soon as he reached the right distance, Arsen cast the stabbed skill to inflict some damage on the monster.

Clang!

The sound of two metals colliding was perceived by his ears. Also, the vibration of the contact easily spread throughout the area.

Bang!

Even though the monster stepped back two steps, still, a malicious smile appeared on its face.

Moreover, Arsen was blinking his eyes in confusion while feeling that his arms were getting numb. "What is this? Why did this monster's wooden staff manage to block his dagger? No matter how hard he looked at it, the wooden staff could never resist against metal.

"Ha! That's your point why you are so confident to charge at me." Hanz said in a mild tone while showing the dark violet magical power coating his staff.

Yes, it seemed like this monster certain magic spell that could harden the object it was utilizing. Moreover, Hanz felt insulted as this was a human fully thinking that he could win against him in terms of physical strength.

Arsen clicked his tongue as he missed the chance to use the two remaining stabs. But what he could do? If he continued to utilize the remaining stabs, he could feel his health power would suffer.

--

To begin with, Hanz stepped forward while pointing the wooden staff at Arsen. It was still radiating the violet aura as the effects weren't dissipated. "So that's it, you are underestimating me." Hanz paused for a second and spread his killing intent after noticing the goblins and corrupted animals were about to attack the human. "This human is mine. If someone of you dares to move prepare to die."

All the monsters gradually stepped back and shivered in fear. All of them could feel their feet were six feet under.

"Show me what you got!"

Body Enhancement!